An Unlikely Pairing
by Christina Wynnwood
Summary: Severus Snape and Hermione Granger begin to unearth strange feelings that manifest between them. They act out in their confusion. After Snape ingests a potion that kills his emotions, Hermione has to fight to get them back. Will she ever succeed?
1. Chapter 1

(This is the edited version of what I had up before. It's the same story with minor differences. I like this one better. I think it explains a lot more.

As always, I don't own anything!)

As fast as her feet would go, Hermione Granger stormed from the dungeons with her robes billowing. The corners of her eyes stung with the presence of tears formed by sheer frustration. How she hated him. How she loathed him. Nothing made sense about him in her mind. How could he be so unfair? What made him hate everything that existed, other than those of Slytherin House? Nothing in her logical mind could comprehend a thing about the man. Even after spending countless classes with him, he gave nothing away about himself, short of his intolerable nature. She hated him without a doubt.

He watched her go, thinking about how easily she became upset. For one so intelligent, she really didn't possess much emotional capacity. He treated her no different than he treated the other students. Why was it that she took it worse than the rest of them? Furthermore, why did he care? The others' feelings meant nothing to him. He would remove points from each of them in turn and yet, when he did the same to her, the smallest amount of guilt would creep into his brain. In the chilly dungeon air, he sighed, dipped his quill in ink, and began to write out the next week's lesson plan.

No matter what she tried, it seemed that she couldn't stay under his radar. Perhaps it wasn't in her cards to be low-key in the dungeons; maybe she was meant to shine in the classroom. In any case, it was apparent that she was not apt at keeping her mouth shut and Snape was well aware of that. He used this to his liking, asking questions that she was bound to answer and reprimanding her when she left an important fact out. The students of Slytherin House cheered while those of Griffindor would mutter under their breath in annoyance. After the fifth or sixth question answered incorrectly, ten more points were taken from Griffindor and Hermione refused to answer another question of his.

Of course, Snape wasn't likely to leave her alone. He criticized the consistency of her potion, advising her to follow the instructions next time instead of adding her own "flair". She was close to tears after this single class period and she kept her lips tightly closed. She longed to lash out at him. He was so arrogant and demanding and completely unfair. Out of any other student in the class, she knew that she worked the hardest for the best results. She watched in frustration as he walked around the cauldrons of the other students without saying a word, though their potions bubbled in rainbow colors and gave off the scent of rotting eggs. She blinked back tears and turned into her book.

He knew inside that what he did was wrong but he couldn't help but to push her buttons. She was so easily discouraged and he knew well that she would be tougher one day for it. The other students didn't recognize what he was doing. They didn't know that he picked on her because she was far more brilliant than the rest of them. They just thought that she was a know-it-all and were simply relieved that his hostility wasn't upon one of them. He knew well that he was feared among most students; he wanted it no other way. Fear could be a valuable teaching tool. He also knew that most of them thought of him as a greasy-haired git. Fleetingly, the thought crossed his mind of how Hermione Granger thought of him. He knew well that he wasn't thought of highly by her. It disturbed him that he cared, even the tiniest bit. "Granger!" His voice barked across the dungeon, making several students start in surprise. Her head snapped up, eyes rimmed with red even under the dim light of the candles. "Your performance is terrible. Detention tonight at eight." He turned on his heel and retreated to his office. "Class is dismissed!"

Once he reached the door of his office, he turned to watch her gather her books and bottle her potion hurriedly, like she couldn't wait to be free of the dungeons and Snape's merciless glare. It concerned him that he didn't get even the tiniest amount of satisfaction from upsetting her but he wasn't quite sure how to express that. He pushed it from him mind.

Hermione didn't have much time between dinner and detention so she left the Main Hall early so that she wasn't late. During the walk to the dungeons, her mind was working frantically. First, she wasn't aware what she had done to deserve this. Her potion was near perfect and nowhere as terrible as some of the others'. Second, she wasn't sure why she was being singled out. Third, she never had detention before and especially not in the dungeons. Would it be cold after dark? How long would it take? As she descended the stone stairs, those question and others assaulted her mind. The first was answered as her breathe began to form in the air in front of her. She quickly wondered if she should double back for her cloak but the prospect of being late kept her moving forward.

She reached the Potions classroom and headed towards Snape's office. The door was ajar but she knocked before peeking inside. "Enter." Snape's voice was as it always was; harsh and uncaring. She shivered before she opened the door and stepped inside.

Students at Hogwarts rarely saw the inside of Snape's office and lived. This was a well known fact. However, Hermione was surprised to find that the fire was lit and roaring happily inside of the grate. Involuntarily, her shoulders relaxed just a little bit. It was very well that the fire was glad to see her because the look on Snape's face certainly said otherwise. "You look relieved to see the fire, Ms. Granger."

"I-I am, Sir." She was upset to hear how small her voice sounded. Why did he make her feel so tiny? "I expected the dungeon to be very cold."

"If you expected it to be cold then why didn't you bring a cloak?" His dark eyes seemed to bury themselves into hers, seeking out the answer.

She stammered, trying to get out a coherent answer but her nerves got the better of her. With a wave of his wand, the fire was extinguished. "If you continue to second guess yourself then you'll never get anywhere, no matter how hard you study." Her dismay must have shown on her face. "Never mind that. You are to clean out my supply closet. Get to it." His attention went to his desk.

As she had expected, the closet was freezing. She supposed that the temperature was better for the many foul-smelling potions that he kept in there, though it wasn't good for her. Slowly, she began to alphabetize the various jars, her fingers freezing and going numb. She quietly blew on them, trying to get them to respond but the little bit of warmth barely affected them. However cold she was, she worked gingerly for she knew that if she were to drop one of the vials, Snape would never let her go to freedom.

The supply closet was quiet but Snape listened intently all the same. Occasionally, the sounds of her breathing on her hands would reach his ears. The sound made his shoulders slowly relax and he shrugged his cloak off and stood up.

Hermione didn't hear him enter the closet; she was too focused on what she was doing. However, when a sudden warmth was draped across her shoulders, she couldn't help but fall into it without thinking. Quickly, she came to her senses and turned to make eye contact with Snape. His eyes were hooded and she couldn't read them at all. _Did he just…_ He blinked and turned away, returning to his desk.

Her frozen hands clutched the cloak around her body. It was still warm. Her fingers felt for the cold silver clasp before she fastened the dark green material around her. The cloak was far too large for her but she was frozen and welcomed the warmth eagerly.

It took a few minutes for her to realize that she was actually wearing Snape's cloak. He had given it to her, placed it over her shoulders… Almost like he knew that she was cold and cared. _No_. She shook her head to dislodge her thoughts. _Impossible_. _He cares about no one_. Hermione was very unsure of what to make of this and she tried to focus on the shelves in front of her but the cloak made it difficult. It was filled with his scent and she was surprised to find that it didn't smell bad. It was actually pleasant to her. For someone who spent his life in a dungeon, Hermione was shocked to find that he smelled like a person, rather than the parts of disemboweled frogs. She shook her head yet again to clear those thoughts away as well.

Now, with her hands contently warm and her mind clear, she moved back to the shelf, intending to finish her assignment and push the confusion from her mind.

Snape continued to sit at his desk. His quill was poised over the parchment intending to write, but there was a lack of movement on that part. His ears were wide open. He knew that if the girl had frozen under his time, he would be blamed. He didn't want that. It was too much paperwork. In any case, he was confused at his sudden act of caring. But should he call it that? In his mind, his thoughts were running wild. _I was merely protecting myself in giving her that cloak. _Yes, those were safe thoughts_. _As long as he thought of himself, everything was okay_. _

Then, he looked up from the parchment and saw the spare cloaks hanging on the closet door. He wondered why he didn't just give her one of those. The chill, dungeon air hung on his skin but he was immune to it by now after spending so much time there so what did it matter if he tried to keep warm or not?

But his thoughts were interrupted when he heard Hermione come out through the door way.

She looked much better when she was warm. Her cheeks were pink and rosy and her skin had taken on a healthy glow. She also looked very nice in his cloak. The colors of Slytherin suited her well. It was a long on her but the dark green color did wonders to her skin. He was suddenly afraid that he was staring and he narrowed his eyes in his typical manner. Right away, the glow on her skin seemed to die away a little bit. "Have you finished yet?"

"Yes, Professor. It's been done. Would you like to take a look?"

"No." His speech was quick and snappish. She looked taken aback by the sudden harshness, though she wasn't surprised. "You can go back to the dormitories now. And be careful not to be caught by Mr. Filch or that excuse for a cat. I will not vouch for your whereabouts this late at night."

Her fingers fumbled with the clasp on the cloak as she pulled it off. Snape was watching her, regarding her with a curious expression on his face. His eyes weren't as hard as they normally were and his mouth seemed more relaxed. She noted to herself that he held a quill above a blank piece of parchment. It looked like he had been intending to write but hadn't gotten to it yet. She wondered why.

The moment that the cloak left her shoulders, the cold sank into her skin. She put the cloak over the back of a chair and diverted her eyes from him. Blushing, she said "I know. I won't be caught. And… thank you for letting me borrow the cloak. It was… welcome." She could feel her heart pounding in her chest and her own heartbeat in her ears from the rushing blood. _What is this? Fear? No… it doesn't feel the same… _

Snape noted the color rise in her cheeks with half interest. She still looked mousy but the blushing was attractive on her. _Attractive? No. Not attractive_. He decided that it would be best to look back towards the parchment. "Get out. And do not attempt to show off your 'intelligence' while in my class again. Let this be a lesson to you. Know-it-alls are not appreciated in my classes."

Hermione stood there for a second longer than she meant to, his words working themselves into her brain. Her feet wanted to take her automatically to the door but something tugged at her to remain. He looked up and she thought that she saw the corner of his lips pull up into the smallest of smiles. It was faint and brief because, a second later, he raised his voice for her to move and she ran out, closing the door behind her.


	2. Chapter 2

(This is the edited version of what I had up before. It's the same story with minor differences. I like this one better. I think it explains a lot more.

As always, I don't own anything!)

After spending her detention with Professor Snape, Hermione quickly headed back to her dormitory. She had no doubt that he would be true to his word and sell her out to Filch in a cold heartbeat and she didn't want to be put in that position. One detention was enough to deter her in breaking rules or "knowing-it-all" for a while, even if she felt like she was being punished wrongfully.

When she reached her room, she undressed and donned her nightgown. Sitting down at her dresser, she began to brush her hair. While she did that, she let her thoughts run around without the leash for a little while. It didn't take long before Snape's image floated across her mind. She pictured him at his desk, quill in hand, regarding her with that queer expression that she had seen in the dungeons. It was a curious look. It was nothing like his normal facial expression. It was rather out of his character.

Under every day circumstances, he walked around with his eyes narrowed in disgust, like there was a foul-smelling substance underneath his nose at all times. Tonight, Hermione had witnessed a softer look to his face. It had looked like he was studying her almost, and that he liked what he was observing.

The brush stopped moving as she put down her hand. _No. That can't be right. Snape hates me. He shows his contempt every day._ Still not moving, she ran through some more thoughts. She lightly touched on her attendances to Muggle Elementary Schools. Back then, the boys that really liked you were supposed to pick on you the most. Being mean was almost a sign of affection in those immature minds.

She thought about this, long and hard as she moved to lay under the blankets of her bed. _Snape's not an elementary school boy. He's got more experience and sense than that. I'm sure that his maturity level has grown since he was a young boy. That's silly to even consider. _

But the more that she thought about it, the more that it seemed to make sense. For the most part, Snape was a man that was withdrawn from the world. He spent a lot of his time in the dungeons of Hogwarts. He didn't befriend the other teachers. As a matter of fact, Hermione wasn't aware of him having any friends at all. As far as she could tell, he didn't even leave the grounds after the term was over. The castle was his only home. And she knew well about his past with James Potter and the crew that accompanied him. Even in high school, Snape was the butt of many jokes after his infatuation with Lily Potter surfaced. From what she (and many others knew), Snape had never been in any kind of relationship with a woman at all. He barely interacted with the female staff. What made it worse was Lily's clear and hurtful rejection, quickly followed by James' added insults.

This fact led Hermione to suspect that after that point in his life, he wasn't likely to show any kind of positive feelings towards women. She suspected that he was almost emotionally stunted in his growth. She had never seen the man smile. Not once in the time that she knew him had she even imagined it. She never cared. No one would ever think of him crying either.. The only emotions that Snape ever openly expressed were anger or discontentment. Seeing any other display from him was unheard of.

It was in this moment that Hermione realized that Snape did, in fact, have the emotional content of a school child or a chronically depressed teenager. The thoughts that accompanied that revelation weren't all pleasant either. _If he treats me like this… _She cut that thought out without consideration. She then wondered when the last time was that he felt some kind of happiness. She laid in her bed and tried to imagine what he might look like with a true smile on his face… It wasn't long after procuring that image that she fell asleep.

As Hermione had hurried back to her room, Severus Snape stayed as tense as he had been while she was in the room. He could feel the stress in his shoulders and he suddenly became aware that he was clenching his teeth. Upon realizing this, he forced himself to let out a sharp breath of air. Strangely frustrated with himself for unknown reasons (which frustrated him even more), he put the quill down and crumpled the blank piece of parchment, throwing it into the ashes of the dead fire. There, he stared at it for a moment, keeping his mind as clear as he could.

This, however, wasn't working well for him. Try as he might, the image of a smiling Hermione in the halls of Hogwarts kept coming into his thoughts. He found them to be annoying but they were insistent. He looked around at the bare walls of his office to find something to distract him with no luck. Then he saw the supply door ajar. _She couldn't have shut the door? Wretched girl. _

He got up to close the door when he decided that he would take a look at her work. If it wasn't perfect then she would be back, this time without the warmth of a cloak. He didn't tolerate anything less than perfection, especially in his own private stores.

He entered the closet and looked around. Indeed, things were neat and organized. All of his vials were grouped by the letter that they started with and, within that category, they were arranged by the size and shape of the bottle or vial that the substance was in. His initial reaction surprised him. Few people could organize anything to fit his standards.

Silently, he studied her work. Nothing was out of place. Not a single bottle. He was slightly impressed by the fact that dust was absent, as well. He continued to look at the shelves. A, B, C, and D were all immaculate. As a matter of fact, he spotted no discrepancy until he reached L.

There he saw something that made him stop cold and his mouth drew into a thin line. He quickly followed the rest of the alphabet, looking for another mistake. When he didn't find one, his eyes traveled back to L. There, in the middle of the shelf, out of order and out of line was the only bottle of Love Potion that he owned.

Confused, he backed out of the closet and shut the door. Out of all the mistakes that she could have made, why was it with the Love potion bottle? His mind started flinging out answers as he locked his office and continued deeper into the dungeons towards his apartment. His thoughts were very logical and they unsettled him more than he was willing to admit to himself.

Once he was shut tightly into his apartment, he undressed and headed to the bed chamber. There, he lit the fire with a flick of his wand and proceeded to sit on the edge of his bed. He stared at the wooden floor, chaos going in his mind.

See, the explanation that was now stuck in his head had something to do with psychology. The human mind was a complicated thing. Even as brilliant as the woman was, she had her flaws. Every person did. He suspected that she checked over her work a few times, missing the misplaced Love Potion bottle each time.

He thought back to how she had looked in his cloak, cheeks flushed with color and skin positively glowing. With this image, he closed his eyes. He had seen that kind of glowing before… but it was never directed towards him. He witnessed it between Lily and James Potter.

His teeth clenched as he remembered this. It was a painful memory that he worked hard to lock away and yet, here it was, knocking on his mind's door again. It was that look that Lily used to give James that made Snape fall in love with her. It was that blush on her cheeks that she got whenever James was around. It was the look that he longed to have directed at him, though he'd never admit that as long as he lived. And…

It was the same look that Hermione was giving Snape for a few precious seconds.

The logical reason that Snape thought up for the misplaced love potion bottle was that Hermione did it subconsciously. She was unlikely to notice it in her review of the shelves but her fingers did it anyway… to speak out what she had yet to realize and accept herself.

"Bollocks." Snape spoke out loud here, surprising himself. "The girl did nothing of the sort. It was a mistake and nothing more. Try as she might to be perfect, she has obvious flaws. This is another one of her bountiful blunders." Then he was slightly unnerved by the fact that he was speaking to himself.

He moved to lay down in his bed and stare blankly at the ceiling. His thoughts were empty as he withdrew deeper into himself yet again. Hours later, he fell into an uneasy sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

(This is the edited version of what I had up before. It's the same story with minor differences. I like this one better. I think it explains a lot more.

As always, I don't own anything!)

The next morning went quickly for Hermione. Though the grounds were foggy, wet, and rainy, she felt like little could dampen her spirits. Her mood frightened Ron and Harry initially. "Hermione. You spent hours of detention with Snape last night… and you're smiling? Have you gone mad?" She wasn't sure what to answer with at that point. Was her good mood really due to her spending time with… Snape? Professor Snape? The Potions Master? His name drew up butterflies in her stomach as she considered the previous night's thoughts. They fluttered around and made her shiver. True, her own feelings were making her confused but the smile wasn't going away, regardless of what anyone said to her.

Severus Snape awoke in a very different manner. His dreams had shown images to torment him. He relived his school boy days within the walls of Hogwarts, just as he had so many times before. It was as though his soul was reminding him of what happened the first time he let his heart get away from him. It wasn't a surprise that he was in a sour mood for the first part of the morning, but as his potions class for the seventh years drew nearer, he couldn't help but feel slightly sick.

She's never missed a class. Today wouldn't be any different. She was too dedicated a student to skip a lesson, even for her least favorite subject. The love potion bottle being out of place hung heavily in his mind. What would he say to her? Anything? Or should he keep his mouth shut and tongue controlled? Was he even capable of doing such a thing? Should she be assigned another detention for her lack of perfection? The next one was sure to be much worse than the first. His thoughts were driving him crazy as a headache developed between his eyes. In an effort to stem the pain, he pinched the bridge of his nose and tried to force his thoughts and emotions down, thus taking him into a state of numbness.

When Hermione entered the classroom, her eyes searched for Snape against her own will. However, he was not looking at her. He seemed focused on hovering over the students as they started to gather their ingredients for class. He looked decidedly stiffer than usual to her though, and she took note of this. He looked to be in a fouler mood than he usually was, too. She wondered what was on his mind and she actually wanted to ask him about it. She shook her head as she sat down. _I must be insane. I'm acting like he has feelings._ Of course, she suspected that he did have feelings. To admit that, however, wasn't an option.

Snape taught the class as he usually did with one major difference: he did not acknowledge Hermione Granger's presence. He made it a point to avoid eye contact with her and he chose to pick on a stuttering, sniveling Neville Longbottom instead. The boy panicked under pressure as soon as Snape's dark eyes descended on his. As the class went on, the boy seemed closer and closer to a panic attack. Still, the professor could not distract himself from the fact that she was sitting right there. Through his peripheral vision, he could see her brown eyes watching him intently, as though the student was studying the teacher. He could almost envision the gears of intelligence working though her head as he lectured and corrected the moronic seventh years.

It pained him to ignore her, to his surprise. His headache grew as he fought with himself. He wanted to openly acknowledge her but he knew better than that. In the uncertainty of what he was feeling, it wasn't an option. Would he show emotion if he gazed upon her? Would she pick up on it? What would happen? There were too many questions and for the first time in his life, Severus Snape was frightened by not having the answers.

When the class was dismissed, Hermione walked back up the stone steps with a slow pace. She had spent the entire class trying to catch his eyes but he determinedly ignored her. She hated feeling like this. She wasn't sure of anything. Her intelligence in the classroom was no help to her right now. In her doubt, she began to second guess the look in his eyes that she had seen last night. The butterflies in her stomach had died down and they left her with an empty feeling, like she was numb.

About halfway back to the dormitory, she realized that she had left her wand behind in the dungeons in her distraction. Suddenly, she was appalled with herself. Never before had she allowed herself to leave such a vital item lying around. She stopped walking and started an internal debate. To walk back into the dungeons and face him didn't seem appealing, especially considering that the loss of a wand is punishable at Hogwarts (to have another wizard get a hold of such a personal instrument could spell disaster for people with magical blood). She suspected that Snape would be sure to punish her. He might even report her to Professor Dumbledore, who was fair but strict. Dealing with either of them didn't sound appealing. Snape was likely to be angry. Dumbledore was likely to be disappointed in her.

On the other hand, the other option was to leave it there until she though that the coast was clear to go get it. How long would Snape stick around in the classroom? All day? Did he sleep there? Would it be possible to get down there without being… seen?

She yelped out loud as her feet broke into a run to catch up with Harry. He had his Invisibility Cloak! It was the only thing that could make this easy right now! He would have to lend it to her because he would understand how dire the situation was. Quickly, she ran him down.

Harry didn't need to think about lending her the cloak. He even offered to go with her to find her wand but she declined, saying that she was quicker and quieter than he was. Granted, Harry or Ron couldn't debate this and they left her to her mission in peace.

As night fell on the grounds of Hogwarts, Hermione Granger began her descent to the dungeons, shrouded in the Cloak of Invisibility.

Snape sat by the fire in his office, his eyes fixed on the dancing flames. His thoughts were restless and conflicted. In his hands, he held the wand of Hermione Granger. He wasn't sure how he knew it was hers but he didn't second-guess himself after picking it up off of the stone floor. He twirled it slowly around his fingers and, after every little rotation, red sparks would fly out of one end. Little attention was paid to that, though. As a matter of fact, Snape was barely aware of her wand at all. He was lost in his thoughts, actually confused by the questions in his mind. _It's so weird a feeling. I don't know what to make of it. I'm normally so… sure… and here, uncertainty is the only thing that I feel. My chest feels tight, as does my throat when I look at her. She is so unique in her ways. Nothing about her reminds me of Lily yet every memory of her has come back to me… I buried her years ago. I thought those feelings to be long gone. But I was wrong because when I look at Granger, I feel… _

Hermione's feet were silent as she padded into the Potions classroom. Quickly, she began her search for her missing wand. It wasn't long until she realized that it wasn't there and after that, she knew that it could be in one place: Snape's office. Would he had gone to bed by now? Would she even be able to get into his office? Was that something that she would want to risk at all? If she was caught, then she was sure that the repercussions would be most severe. Breaking into a professor's office after hours would lose her house more points than they had earned in the last six months. Also, breaking into the office of the professor with the worst attitude problem was likely to get her expelled.

She decided that she had to take her chances with his office. If her wand was in there, she needed to retrieve it and get out as quickly as she could. As quietly as she manage, she tip-toed to the door and pushed it open. She slipped inside and closed the door behind her.

The two of them froze at the same time. Hermione stood stock still as she stared at Snape and he sat just as still as he stared through Hermione. Neither of them breathed and neither of them blinked. They just stared.


	4. Chapter 4

(This is the edited version of what I had up before. It's the same story with minor differences. I like this one better. I think it explains a lot more.

As always, I don't own anything!)

Though she knew that Snape couldn't see her, she was sure that he could hear the pounding in her heart or smell the fear on her skin. She wasn't breathing; she couldn't risk making the sound; but she wouldn't be able to hold her breath forever. Suddenly, it didn't matter how intelligent she was. It didn't matter that she was a perfect student. Here, in the moment, she was trapped with the most ill-tempered professor of the school. Her eyes broke contact with his and she saw her wand in between his fingers. He was clutching it tightly.

Snape couldn't see anything but he knew that he wasn't alone in the office. He thought about using Granger's wand to send a hot blast in the direction of the door, thinking that one of the castle's ghosts had set out to torment him again. His nostrils flared like an animal's, almost like he was trying to scent out the intruder. He could hear sharp and shallow breathing coming from the door after a few moments. _Ghosts don't breathe_. He opened his mouth to unleash a yell at the stupid student when his hand was briefly engulfed in flames.

This made him break eye contact with the door and he hollered in pain. He let go of the wand and it rolled by itself and disappeared in front of the door. Just like that. It disappeared. Right away, he knew what was going on without another thought.

Hermione let out a loud breath when her wand rolled underneath the cloak and rested against her foot. She bent to pick it up, intending to scurry out of the dungeons as quickly as she could but Snape's voice made her jump out of her skin.

"POTTER!" His voice was thunderous and she was sure that it shook dust from the old stone ceiling. He went digging through his desk, yelling as he searched for something frantically. "THOUGHT THAT YOU'D BE CLEVER? YOU LOSE YOUR WAND AND THEN SNEAK INTO MY OFFICE USING THAT DAMNED CLOAK? NOT THIS TIME, POTTER! YOU WON'T WEASEL YOUR WAY OUT OF THIS ONE!" He placed a jar upon his desk and then rushed forward at Hermione.

She let out a yelp as the invisibility cloak was torn from her body and tossed across the room. Snape had a look of madness in his eyes that slowly faded as they stood face to face. Hermione shook in terror and in nerves but she didn't move from the spot.

They stood like that for about a minute, regarding each other in complete uncertainty. The seconds ticked by and Hermione spoke first. "I-I'm really sorry, Professor. I left my wand, completely by accident and I thought that I could come back for it b-before anyone had found it…" He broke eye contact with her first and walked back to his desk. Appearing to be under severe restraint, his next words were through gritted teeth, holding back a strong feeling of anger.

"Granger, it's late. Take your wand and go."

She didn't move, unsure of what he was going to say to Dumbledore in the morning. "But but, Professor, I'm really sorry. My wand-"

He knew her fears. She never wanted to have to be sent to the Headmaster on a disciplinary matter. "No further action will be taken, Granger. I take it that you won't be losing it again." Hermione still didn't move, unsure. She watched as Snape fumbled with the little black jar. For some reason, he used only one hand to try to open it. His other hand was hidden out of sight. Quickly he became frustrated and sat down on the chair, eying her with intense… something. He was studying her.

"Professor…"

"Granger! Go back to your dormitory before I call your head of house to deal with you properly! You have tried my patience for more than one day and you are getting off without a punishment! Consider yourself lucky!" He winced and then went back to play with the little jar, attempting to unscrew the lid with one hand. She watched as his patience gave out and he slammed it onto the desk, perhaps attempting to shatter the porcelain.

Her eyes regarded the jar and before she could stop herself, she moved forward and picked it up from his desk. With nimble hands, she opened it and got a wiff of the substance inside. Her nose picked up hints of aloe vera, papaya, and honey, which she knew were all components of a burn remedy. Her eyes darted to his one good hand and then she searched for the other hand. There was no doubt that her wand had burned him.

Snape's eyes watched her and smoldered. She had the nerve to reach for something on his desk and then open it? _She's trying to help… but how dare she…_He fought himself hard not to knock the ointment from her hands and fling it into the fire. He knew she was calculating what was in it and he saw the registration on her face as her eyes scanned for his burned hand. _No. A student will never see me injured. Ever. _His blood boiled over at this thought. He stood up suddenly and grabbed the jar.

His eyes widened when Hermione didn't let go. The two stood there in a staring contest, both holding onto the jar. Snape let out a shot of air through his nose like an angry animal at her clear disobedience but he didn't move otherwise. "Granger. Let. Go." His words were short and dangerous and his lips barely moved. Her eyes weren't fearful, only determined, and he took that as stupidity on her part.

"No Professor." Her voice was as low and gentle as her grip on the jar was firm. "Let me see your hand." She could feel her heart pounding in her chest but she was refusing to back down. Yes, she was afraid. No student before had ever been so bold to defy him like that. She felt as though this blatant opposition was something that Snape hadn't encountered since he became an adult. She knew he was holding his breath. Would he reach out and strike her? Hex her? Curse her?

_Who does she think she is? _His thoughts were furious in his mind. _How dare she! Stupid wretched thing! _He was shaking with anger now and his restraint was wearing thin. With wavering breath he hissed "Get. Out. Of. My. Office." Each word was enunciated with venom and his heart threatened to jump from his chest. "NOW!"

Hermione's concentration was broken as his last word tore through her resolve. Hands letting go of the jar, she stepped back from him and swallowed the bile that had suddenly appeared in her throat. She stood there in shock of herself, her feet incapable of movement, her mind unable to think. She could only stare at him with wide eyes. Vaguely, she could hear him whispering to her, telling her to leave but the words did nothing to spark movement.

"Granger, get OUT!" He spoke his last word as he flung the jar towards the wall behind her. With a loud crash, the porcelain shattered and it's contents were strewn everywhere. The sound was enough to spark her to life and she picked up the invisibility cloak and ran from the office.

Snape stood rooted to the spot for a few minutes, breathing heavily, eyes wide but not seeing. He watched her leave the dungeons through the open door before the office one slowly closed and latched. At the click of the door, he sunk down into his chair and watched as the burn salve slid down the wall. His injured hand ached painfully and he ignored it. His chest hurt more as he fought to breath and think.

_Why? Why did she do that? What business did she have in touching anything of mine? Why didn't she relinquish the salve when I told her to? Why did she ask to see my hand? Stupid child. Ignorant girl. _As his thoughts ran wild, the pressure on his chest began to build. His breath quickened and he struggled to control it. At the corners of his eyes, he could feel moisture and he wiped it away in sheer frustration. He sprung to his feet in anger and ripped every paper and device off of his desk with a yell of frustration that echoed throughout the dungeon.

As she ran, she heard his yell and tears sprang to her eyes. _I'm so stupid. What was I thinking? _She didn't bother to put her cloak back on as she headed towards the dormitory and luckily, no one was around to stop her. She barely remembered giving the password to the fat lady and giving Harry back the cloak in an otherwise empty common room.

Harry's green eyes studied hers for a moment before she murmured her thanks and turned to go. He grabbed her hand to stop her and pull her back, gently. The chill of her skin surprised him and he asked what had happened. She shook her head slowly at first but it grew more and more frantic over a few seconds. The tears fell freely now and a shocked Harry could do nothing as she collapsed into his arms, sobbing something terrible.


	5. Chapter 5

(This isn't a very important chapter as far as action is concerned but it's needed, I think.

Currently, I'm working on editing the other chapters and I'll be posting the updated version soon. I found a lot of mistakes and things that I could improve on while I was rereading it so I'm going to post new copies once I'm finished.

Thanks for all of the reviews and please keep them coming!

I don't own anything!)

The next morning, a puffy-eyed Hermione sat in the Great Hall with Harry and Ron, silently scanning the staff table at breakfast. When she saw no sign of him, she allowed her shoulders to relax just a little and she let out a sigh. Harry kept giving her sideways glances, still unaware of why she had broken down in his arms the previous night. She was usually so composed and together but now… Her hair was frazzled more than it normally was and there were bags under her eyes. She seemed tired and stressed.

Ron was busy bickering with Ginny across the table and hadn't taken too much notice to the state that his friend was in. Harry grew annoyed with the banter and elbowed him in the ribs. With her noticing, he gestured to Hermione and Ron shrugged. With a little bit of coaxing from Harry, he cleared his throat and asked what was wrong.

Hermione didn't hear him the first time because she was lost in her thoughts. She started when she realized that she was being addressed. "It's nothing, Ron. Just the usual things. Class and the lot."

Ron, being as clueless as ever, took her answer literally. "That's good to hear. But I've got good news for you." She lifted her head to look at him and he finished with "The greasy git canceled class for today. I overheard Malfoy and his gang talking about it. It's good enough news to make my day."

"What? Why? He never cancels class. Is he sick?" He had Hermione's full attention now. Snape? Cancel his lesson for the day? All of them?

"Hopefully." Harry chimed in. "It'll make my week if it's something terminal."

"Harry! Don't say that! What if it happened? You'd feel horrible!" Her voice was a little on the shrill side as she yelled at him. The boys didn't answer her this time. Ron looked at Harry and then arched an eyebrow in Hermione's direction. "What? You're not supposed to wish illness upon people." She sunk down on the bench a little bit.

"No? But Snape is a snake, not a person. Since when do you defend him?" Harry's words were slow and careful, like he could sense her distress even though it was physically obvious.

Hermione felt her face grow red as she gathered up her books from the table. She stood up and snapped, "I'm not defending him but what you said was horrible!" She turned on her heel and stormed out of the Great Hall without looking back at them.

It took a few moments for either Harry or Ron to speak. They were both very confused at her reaction. "Wow…" Ron's voice was low. "I wonder what's got her knickers in a bunch."

Hermione walked through the corridors with no destination in mind. Her face was red with embarrassment now. She knew that her reaction was going to be questioned by her friends later and she had no idea what she was going to tell them. She could blame hormones and leave it at that. The males wouldn't question female matters, to be sure; it was too awkward for them to handle openly. _Yes, I'll say that I'm hormonal. Brilliant._

With her excuse out of the way, her mind turned back to Snape. Was he ill? Why else would he cancel his lessons for the day? She asked herself the obvious questions over and over again and felt a compelling urge to visit the dungeons. She had to shake her head to clear it again while she walk. So distracted she was, she turned a corned and walked headlong into Albus Dumbledore.

It took Hermione a second to realize what happened. She looked up into his light blue eyes and relaxed when she saw that he was smiling. "Ms. Granger? Are you alright? You seem to be distracted."

Hermione bent to pick up her books, wondering why he was out of his office. He rarely roamed the halls. "I'm so sorry, Professor. I wasn't looking where I was going. It won't happen again." She stood up straight as he chuckled warmly.

"An apology isn't needed, Ms. Granger. I may be old but it takes a little bit more than a gentle bump to break my ancient bones." His smile crinkled his eyes and she attempted to return it. The attempt failed though so that his faded. "But I'll repeat… Are you alright? You appear to be upset."

"I'm fine, Professor, just distracted. I should be going though… I don't want to be late for class."

"Very well, if you're sure that you're fine." He moved out of her way but laid a hand gently on her shoulder before she could pass. "Oh, before I forget. You've heard that Professor Snape has canceled his lessons for the day, correct? I wouldn't want you to be the only one who doesn't know."

"No, I know but thank you, Professor." She thought for a minute and then asked why he cancelled.

He smiled again, his eyes warm as he answered with a touch of humor. "I haven't got the slightest idea. But you've got to be the only person who's asked so far. Most others are just glad to be free of the dungeons for the day!"

"I know. I mean, I am. I just wanted to make sure that he wasn't ill."

He squeezed her shoulder in a fatherly way and said, "Don't worry, Ms. Granger. I'm sure that our Potions Master will be back to work tomorrow morning."

Hermione left Professor Dumbledore with a weak smile and headed to the Charms corridor. Through her class, she didn't speak to Ron or Harry and they left her alone for fear of being snapped at again. As a matter of fact, she didn't speak with them in any of their classes. When her Potions class time came around, she headed back to her dormitory, intending to get some work done with the extra time. She was just as distracted as before and was walking without much direction or wits about her. She was walking quickly, in order to avoid talking to anyone. Alone time was a must at the moment.

When Hermione ran into another person, she was knocked to the ground and she heard glass breaking. Then she was covered in a sticky kind of blue goo. Her books fell as well and papers scattered across the stone. "Well, isn't this just great!" She exclaimed as she started gathering her things. She froze when Professor Snape cleared his throat. She looked up to see him covering his nose with the sleeve of his robe. She blushed a bright pink and started to stutter an apology when her vision began to cross and her head pounded painfully. Before she could speak another word, her vision went black.

(Any ideas on where it's going next? Let me know what you think!)


	6. Chapter 6

(Special thanks goes to DZMom for her excellent commentary and suggestions! I was always very surprised that she guessed where it was going. Now, who wants to guess what the potion was that Snape spilled on Hermione?

Overall, thanks for all of the criticism and suggestions!

Moreover, I've finished editing the other chapters. They've replaced the original ones. No more typos! Anyway, ENJOY!

I don't own anything!)

Frantically, Hermione rubbed at her eyes. _Why can't I see?_ Her movements were arrested when Snape grabbed her wrists. "Stop that. You'll make it worse." She could feel his cold hands wiping goo from her face and she tried not to move in discomfort.

"This really stings! What the hell did you drop on me?"

Snape stopped moving. "Dropped? If you hadn't been running about the halls in some teenage hormone-induced haze, then you wouldn't have run into me. You need to watch where you're going." She heard him fumbling about in his robes. "Scourgify." As if a thousand little scrubbing bubbles were racing across her skin, the goo dissolved and disappeared completely. She rubbed at her eyes again. Nothing.

"I still can't see." Snape cursed and picked her up by her arm. He started to pull her in an unknown direction and she fought him off. "Hey, wait a minute! Where are you taking me? And what was that? Why can't I see?"

Snape wasn't surprised to see her fight him off. _Natural instinct, I suppose. She should have been watching where she was going, in any case. Now look at this mess. _He waved his wand and her books and papers were returned to her dormitory. The broken glass and potion left behind were sent back to the dungeons. He'd deal with that later. But he couldn't help but to be annoyed with her. That potion had taken all night and most of his morning to brew.

"Stop resisting. I'm taking you to Madame Pomfrey. You don't want this to be permanent, do you?"

Hermione stopped. "Permanent? Bloody hell. What was in those bottles? An elixir to blind your enemies or maybe preoccupied students?"

She was being drug along again. She didn't fight it this time. "Don't be stupid. It was nothing of the sort."

"Then what was it? I've got a right to know! It's made me blind!" Snape bit his tongue and continued to drag her. He didn't think that the effects of the spill would be permanent but Madame Pomfrey would know better than he would. He knew that she would ask what was in the potion in her nosy way but she wouldn't be able to tell what it was meant for from the ingredients. She wasn't a Potions Mistress, after all.

Snape listened to her the entire way up to the Hospital Wing. He was well aware that she had every right to complain but her incessant talking had given him a full-blown headache by the time that they reached their destination.

Hermione sat down on one of the beds as Madame Pomfrey poked and prodded her, asking Snape question after question. "This is serious! The girl could lose her sight!" Ever the serious Healer, Madame Pomfrey's first concern was always the student. Hermione could do nothing but listen to them banter back and forth. She didn't think that she would be blind forever so she wasn't nearly as panicked as she should have been, but she was slightly worried about the burning in her eyes. That couldn't be good. Snape hadn't answered her questions about what was in the potions so when Madame Pomfrey demanded to know, she listened very carefully.

Snape listed off ingredients one by one, leaving a gap in between each one to allow the Healer to comment. "No… that would affect her eyes… Now there's a possibility… Leech juice? Disgusting, but hardly dangerous. Nettles! Now those would cause stinging… but blindness?" Hermione knew that Madame Pomfrey meant well but her commentary was very distracting. Sure, the Healer would know what the ingredients could do to a person but she had no idea what potion Snape had made with the particular combination. That's what Hermione was trying to figure out, silently. Her mind quickly sorted through the potions that she knew. Whatever it was, he had cancelled all of his lessons to brew it. It must have been important. While she was running through her mental archives, she remained quiet.

Snape was aware of Granger's silence. It unnerved him because he knew she was trying to figure out what the potion was for. He could feel his palms starting to sweat and his mouth was running dry. Why did he have to run into her? _Why couldn't it have been another student? Someone less clever, less brilliant than Hermione Granger_. He had to stop his thoughts for a moment. That was wandering into dangerous territory. He mentally tossed the thought away but nothing could quell his nerves.

Suddenly, it dawned on Hermione and things became blindingly (no pun intended) clear to her. Madame Pomfrey had a similar realization too, in terms of how to heal Hermione, regardless of the affliction: dittany, applied to the eyes in a drop form should restore her sight in a few days. Hermione didn't care though. Yes, a cure was great but her mind was stuck on the potion that Snape brewed and spilled. She was sure to keep her face still because she didn't want to give away that she knew. _Should I even say anything to him? It's not my place. He would probably just get angry at me. Is it worth it?_

However, she was to be quickly distracted at a troubling thought as she heard the Healer bustling about her, muttering about fresh linens. "Wait. You want me to stay here? No, no, no. Let me go back to the dormitory. I'll be fine." She heard Madame Pomfrey scoff without stopping her movements.

"Nonsense, child. You have no sight. You couldn't even make it back to your room without adding additional injury to yourself. You are to stay here until you are healed. These are the rules, dear."

"I'd be much more comfortable in my own space, instead of the openness of this wing. If you're concerned about me getting back safely, I'm sure that Professor Snape would lead me back safely, seeing as how he's responsible for this." She fought to hide her smile as no one spoke or moved.

Snape cleared his throat. "I think that my concoction might have affected her common sense. Such a suggestion is rather inappropriate." _She's kidding right? Me lead her back to the Griffindor tower? Into her room? No. Absolutely not._ His eyes bored into hers like drills.

Hermione knew that he was staring at her, though she could not see. She could feel the obvious anger coming off of him. She didn't care. It would allow her a perfect opportunity to sort out all of the nonsense from the past week. She wouldn't pass that chance up, not even to avoid his anger.

After much coaxing on Hermione's part, Madame Pomfrey agreed to the arrangement, trusting that Snape, evil as he was, would allow no further harm to come to her. She brewed up the eye drops and gave the vial to Hermione to keep in her pocket with the instructions. Madame Promfrey would also have food delivered to her so that she may still eat properly. Within a half hour, she and he were standing outside of the wing. Snape looked down at Hermione and sneered.


	7. Chapter 7

(Sorry about the wait. I've been busy with school work and research papers. LOVE being in college. Anyway, here's another chapter.

As always, I own nothing)

The trip back to the dormitory was a silent one. Outside of the hospital wing, Snape had instructed her to grasp his elbow as he led her back. Moving quickly across the stone floor, he could feel the warmth of her fingers through his robes. He tried his best not to let it distract him. Once, with his thoughts occupied, he forgot to warn her of impending stairs. She tripped and almost slid down the entire flight. But Snape was quick and he grabbed her, apologizing coldly.

In her head, her thoughts moved faster than her feet. The idea of such a potion hung heavy there and she was itching to call him out on it. She had made her decision at this point, knowing well that if she didn't say something, it would drive her crazy. Still, what does one say when the topic is so awkward? How should she bring it up?

When they reached the portrait of the Fat Lady and she gave the password, she could feel her mouth go dry. Why was she so nervous? As his cool hands helped her climb in, she could hear the common room go quiet. The hair on the back of her neck went up, knowing that she was being watched intently. Her suspicions were confirmed as Snape barked out a few harsh words.

"Mind your staring! I was to escort Miss Granger back to her room. Does anyone have anything to say about that?" No one moved or spoke, but they looked at Hermione curiously. "I didn't think so. Mind yourselves!" There was a flurry of movement and the nosy students ignored the two of them like they were never there.

Hermione whispered the way to her room and Snape was careful to lead her there, taking care that she didn't trip up the stairs. Once she was safe inside her own space, sat upon her bed, he turned to go but she reached out for his arm to stop him. Her grasp fell short but he got the message. "Professor? The potion you made…"

"None of your business." His speech was quick and sharp. He could see her visibly shrink an inch or two. Her face looked crestfallen but not downtrodden. She wasn't going to give up that easily, he could tell. But he tried to block out the sight of her brown eyes. He looked around the room instead, taking in the décor.

Granger had a classy taste, it seemed. The walls were absent of lace and pink like he had assumed all teenage girls covered their space in. Instead of posters of bands and other famous personas, Hermione had covered her walls in bookshelves and all of them were full.

"When you spilled it on me, it became my business." Her voice was quiet from the four-poster bed. "Why are you trying to brew away your emotions?"

Snape's skin turned colder and he regarded her with a silent amazement. She really had figured it out just from hearing a list of the ingredients. Even he couldn't deny that she was brilliant for that. "Don't be stupid." This was the second time he said that to her that day.

For whatever reason, tears started to flow down her cheeks and she hurriedly wiped them away. Snape stepped forward and then stopped quickly. He didn't think that she heard that involuntary movement. "Professor, the ingredients are all there! I'm not wrong about this and I'm certainly not being stupid. I've read it before. The potion, when brewed overnight, would take away your emotions, leaving you with only apathy. And it goes on for years if you're experienced enough. They use it in St. Mungo's in the psychological ward, for medicinal treatment. Why do you want it?"

His nostrils flared as he looked at her like a deer in headlights. His instinct was telling him to flee. An upset female was not something that he was trained to deal with. Furthermore, he didn't have an answer for her. He wasn't going to tell her the truth but for some reason, he didn't want to lie to her either.

She continued to cry silently and his chest began to hurt. _Bloody hell… what am I supposed to do?_ Robotically, he moved forward and knelt in front of her.

_What's he doing?_ Hermione could hear him moving stiffly towards her and when he knelt down, she froze instinctively.

He swallowed a hard lump in his throat and reached up to her face with his right hand. His fingers were gentle as he wiped the tears from her skin. He watched in wonder as she closed her blind eyes and moved her cheek harder against his hand, like she enjoyed it. He marveled at how soft and warm her skin was underneath his palm. "Don't be upset…"

His voice was barely a whisper and it sent chills down her spine. Despite that, her skin grew hot and she wished so hard that she could see him right now. What did his face look like? What kind of expression was he wearing? But before she could begin to imagine the images, his hand was gone. She opened her eyes to nothing as she heard her chamber door slam. "Professor?" No one answered.

Snape flew out of the Gryffindor tower and back to his own quarters as quickly as he could. His heart pounded against his chest, threatening to break free and bleed onto the floor. For some reason, he couldn't clear his throat. The lump had come back and it wasn't leaving despite his best efforts. Mercifully, he ran into no one on the way to the Dungeons.

Unlocking his door with trembling hands, he strode in and shut it behind him. Without missing a beat, he ripped off his robes and headed for his shower. He stepped inside and turned on the cold tap.

The water hitting his skin was a violent shock, which was what he was going for. Breathing hard, he slammed both hands against the tile and leaned forward, letting the ice flow through his veins as the water pounded against him. He then reached for the shampoo and began to scrub his body clean. Every square inch of him. When he was satisfied and his skin was raw, he rinsed off the suds and turned the tap off.

Snape stood in the shower for a moment, shivering and naked, when a realization hit him hard. That realization struck him hard in the chest as he stepped out of the shower and reached for a towel. The pain was too great however, and he fell to the tiled floor.

There, he drew his legs to his chest and let out a howl of pain. Severus Snape began to cry.


	8. Chapter 8

(Sorry for the delay. I was dealing with a huge bout of writer's block and just didn't know where to go from the last chapter. The writer's block has been successfully killed though, and I'm working on Chapter Nine right now.

Thanks so much for the people that have been following my writing. I really appreciate all of the feedback and reviews!

Along with college work, I've been doing some beta work as well. If you haven't already, check out "Salubrious Snape Oil" by DZMom!

I'm going to work on putting up a new fanfiction soon from Smallville, I think. Don't worry though! I'll keep going with this one! I just have some ideas that don't fit into the HP world!

Anyway, enough of my rambling! Enjoy!

As always, I don't own anything!)

Hermione sat frozen as she listened to his footsteps run down the stone stairs. Her face was burning where he had touched her and she let her fingertips graze the area. _It's real_, she told herself. _I got through to him, if only for a moment_. _Why didn't I put a charm on the door? I should have known that he would have bolted!_ She silently cursed herself for her foolishness and slid off of the bed with a huff.

With blind hands, she began to feel her way to the washroom. Once there, she undressed slowly and ran the tap on the shower. Now naked and blind, she felt very exposed, even in her own space. Normally a claustrophobic person, Hermione welcomed the feeling of the warm, enclosed shower.

Her fingers slid down the cool tile, searching for the nook that held her soap. When she found the slippery bar, she started with her face and started to scrub her skin. The exfoliating grit rubbed her skin until it was pink and irritated but she kept going, taking care to reach every part of her body, cleansing it completely and washing away the feelings of loneliness he left her with.

When she moved onto the shampoo, she was still keeping a tight leash on her thoughts. She didn't want to consider everything all at once and have her mind feel overloaded.

She finished her shower and felt around for her fluffy towel. Finding it, she dried off and then wrapped it around her hair. Remembering where she kept it on the back of the washroom door, she donned her bathrobe.

Now warm and dry, she got on her hands and knees and began searching the robes she had worn before her shower for the vial of dittany extract. Her finger found the cool glass and she tilted her head back, dripping a few drops into each eye.

She blinked rapidly, feeling a bit leak down her cheeks. The substance stung a little bit but her vision improved slightly. Now, instead of seeing nothing but darkness, she could see varying amounts of light. _Any improvement is worth noting, right?_ She slowly stood back up and heading back towards her bed.

She was happy to find her comforter and she lay down on top of it. Her wand rolled towards her as her weight disturbed it and she put it on her nightstand table along with the dittany. Closing her eyes helped with the stinging but it started to open up her mind to her thoughts.

_If Snape is trying to brew away his emotions, it means that he's been feeling things lately that he can't control. With his stunted growth in terms of emotions, he probably doesn't know how to deal with it. I wish that he'd talk to me. I feel like if I was given half the chance, I could help him. _

_How though? _

She thought about how he had attempted to comfort her in her distress. What would he do if she were to touch him in the same fashion? Would he reject the contact? Would he freeze like a frightened deer? Or would he welcome some sort of human contact?

She remembered how gentle his hand was upon her cheek and she sighed in relaxation. _Even if he doesn't want it, I'm going to show him how to feel…_

The cold stone floor pressed against Snape's hips and shoulders, creating spots of pain. His spine was stiff and his body was cold. He had fallen asleep on the floor, completely naked and crying. Now, upon waking, he felt utterly pathetic as he pulled himself up to a standing position.

The room was dark and he reached for his wand on the sink. "Lumos," he muttered the rudimentary spell to illuminate the room. He regarded himself in the mirror. There were deep circles underneath his eyes and his hair hung in damp clumps in his face. His left hand clenched the sink and he leaned closer to the mirror, a sneer coming through his lips. Then, he backed up and slunk into his living quarters.

He used to wand to light candles and to summon some clean robes. Once he was clothed, he lit a fire in the grate and sat down in an armchair. On the table across from him, the remnants of his potion glittered in the firelight. The broken vials that he had sent back to his room earlier in the day were coated in dry bits of the potion. With a wave of his wand, they disappeared. _Worthless._

Then he turned his attention to his cauldron that, the night before, had been full of a beautiful brew that would change his life. It was now blackened and empty, just a reminder that he had failed because the Granger girl destroyed his work. Another wave from the wand and the cauldron was sent back to its shelf.

He leaned back into the chair and pressed a forefinger and thumb against the bridge of his oversized nose. He could feel another headache coming on inside of his skull. Slowly, he allowed his mind to consider what had happened that caused him to end up on his washroom floor.

His chest tightened as he pictured her face, eyes streaming with tears. He remembered what it felt like to want to comfort her and he remembered moving forward to touch her smooth skin. His memory floated through the cause of her tears, touching down on a pain-inducing thought.

_She realized what the potion was for… and she cried because of it. She cried because of me. _

He wanted to dismiss it without another thought, stating that the girl was hormonal. _Isn't that what women do? They cry at the drop of a hat about every little thing?_ But he couldn't do that as the tightness in his chest increased again.

"Granger isn't like other women. She actually cares." He said this out loud and scoffed at his own foolishness. His characteristic sneer made an appearance and then quickly faded at another sobering thought_. She isn't like Lily. _

Snape sat in his chair for a time before deciding that he needed to leave his quarters. His mind was beginning to go stir crazy if it was bringing up old ghosts like that. He stood up and buttoned his robes. He pocketed his wand as he headed for the door, intending to take his foul mood out on some astray students.

Out in the dungeons, he welcomed the chill, damp air. He began to make his way towards the Main Hall. After a time, he came upon windows and he realized that he was well past supper and that most students were hidden away in their dormitories.

Since he didn't want to go back to his chamber, he decided to do his patrol and look for students that he could take points from or assign detentions to. That would be sure to help his mood.

But Snape didn't pay attention to where he was walking and he strayed too close to the Gryffindor corridor.

"Professor Snape! You're just the person that I wanted to see!"

He turned to see Madam Pomfrey bustling in his direction, carrying a large tray of food. "I need you to take this to Miss Granger. I can't leave the hospital wing for too long at a time. You never know when a student can fall ill."

Snape took a step back from her. "I'm sorry. I was actually on my way to speak to Minerva, concerning a few wayward students of her house. She's expecting me soon."

"Nonsense." She pressed the tray into his hands. "Minerva will surely understand. Just tell her that you were doing me a favor." Snape opened his mouth to speak again but she cut up off as she took a vial out of her pocket. "This is more dittany for Miss Granger. Please make sure that she knows to apply it to her eyes every two hours. I did some research and her sight should return in a few days." She stopped talking for a second, head tilted as though she was listening for something. "I must go back to my wing," she said as she turned and started to walk away. "Thank you for this, Severus!" She turned a corner and went out of sight.

This left Snape standing in an empty corridor, holding a tray of food for the last person he wanted to see at the moment. "Lovely…"


	9. Chapter 9

(I'm on a roll today! I've cured my writer's block and I'm knocking out chapters left and right!

I tried something a little different in this chapter. I attempted to add a little bit of humor to it. I felt like the characters were coming off as overly-dramatic at points so I tried to show them in a different light.

Snape, especially, will feel Out-Of-Character and I hope that this doesn't bother anyone too much. I like the way that it turned out but if you don't, please give me your thoughts! It can only help me with the later chapters!

I'm off to work on Chapter 10 now!

As always, I don't own anything!)

_I should have stayed in the dungeons… _

The Fat Lady eyed Snape suspiciously as he stood in front of her with his tray of food. "Weren't you already in here earlier today? What do you want now?"

Annoyed, he flared his nostrils. "Since you have such an accurate memory, you'll recall that I was here with Granger a few hours ago. She has been stricken with blindness and has to have her meals delivered to her room."

The Fat Lady's eyebrows disappeared in her hair. "Oh really? And they sent the castle's friendliest professor to do the honors? How very kind of you."

Snape blinked twice, narrowing his eyes dangerously. Such a response he would have expected from Peeves, but from one of the House Portraits? He had never had an issue with disrespect from any of the others. It made him dislike Gryffindor a little more.

"I am doing this as a favor to Madame Pomfrey. Higgle-pig."

The Fat Lady's lip curled into a smile as Snape gave the password and she swung forward to let him in.

Snape struggled a little while climbing into the hole, considering that both of his hands were holding the tray. He focused on not tripping on the hem of his robes or dropping the food. Once inside, he straightened himself as the Fat Lady closed the portal behind him.

Once again, as it had before, the common room fell silent as Snape entered it. His eyes flashed at the students, who were clearly wondering why the Head of Slytherin House was in their dormitory for the second time in one day. Once, he was accompanied by Hermione Granger. This time, he was looking very much like a house elf; disheveled and annoyed, carrying his tray of food.

No sharp words came to mind right away. He didn't much like the attention he was getting. "Get on with it," was the only sentence he could snap before he swept himself towards the girl's dormitory. _Oh this is brilliant_, he thought to himself. _Just brilliant._

He stood outside of Hermione's door and realized that he wasn't quite sure what to do. He could enter with authority, like a professor conducting a room check. _No, no… that won't do at all. She could be dressing_. Or he could politely knock and wait for her to answer? _Knock?_ He scoffed at the thought. He could stop here and charm the food into her room? _I've only seen the inside once. It could end up on the window ledge if I tried that. _

Snape was running out of options when the door opened, stopping his internal argument. "Granger!" He snapped, mainly out of surprise. "What are you doing out of bed?"

Hermione did her best to hide her surprise at hearing his voice. She had heard footsteps come up the stone stairs and stop at her door. She made the decision to open it. However strangely happy she was to have him back, she hid it with a biting comment. "I'm blind, Professor. Not deathly ill." She waited to hear if he'd retort. When he didn't, she continued with. "From what I can gather, it's late. Did you leave something here from earlier?"

Snape cursed himself for not having some kind of dialogue prepared for this. Awkwardly, he shifted his weight and said, "No. I've brought you your supper."

"Oh?" Hermione's eyes did show surprise this time. "I was expecting Madame Pomfrey."

"Yes, well, she had an emergency to tend to. I'm doing it because I was heading in this direction as it was."

Taking a risk, she smirked at him. "You were heading towards the Gryffindor girls' dormitory?"

"Yes." He stopped and rephrased. "No." He stopped again. "Do you want to eat or starve to death? Which one?"

Hermione had to keep herself from laughing at him. He was acting rather nervous. It was kind of cute to her. She wished that she could see the confusion in his eyes or the way that he sneered to cover up what he was really thinking or feeling. Without another word, she stepped aside and felt him enter her room.

While Snape cleared off a spot for the food at her desk, she cleverly used a wordless charm she had come across in her readings to seal the door from the inside and the outside. Then she pocketed her wand again and turned to face the general direction of Snape.

Once the food was placed, Snape regarded her silently. She was dressed in a fluffy bathrobe and her curly hair was damp on her shoulders. To his surprise, he felt his skin flush at seeing her like this. She looked beautiful. The candles on the dresser cast a dancing light across her skin, making her cheeks glow. He cleared his throat.

"I've also brought another vial of the dittany. Madame Pomfrey instructs that you use it every two hours" He watched as she began groping her way towards the sound of his voice. "Your sight should come back in full in just a few days."

"Thank you, Professor. The dittany should help a little with every application. I've only used it once but-" Her words were cut off as her foot caught on the side of her bedpost and she tripped a few feet from Snape.

He instinctively caught her by the elbow and pulled her to stand up straight. "Watch where you're walking! You'll add injury to yourself!" Snape spoke before he could stop his tongue and she looked in the general direction of his face.

"You ARE kidding, right?" Snape looked down at her. They were standing only six inches or so apart. He noted that the color in her cheeks had intensified at her sudden fall. He felt his heart quicken pace as the scent of her freshly washed hair reached his nostrils. She smelled of lavender and vanilla, two scents that he never found remarkable before this very moment. "Professor?"

He let go of her and stepped back. "I should leave." His words were curt and quick as he strode towards the door. He reached for the handle to disappear once again but this time, the door didn't move.

Hermione spun on the spot towards the sound of the door. She hid her smile as he tried once, twice, three times before he hissed at her, "What's this?"

Completely seriously, she said, "It's a door, Professor. One that's been locked." Her heart began to beat faster at this. She knew she was overstepping some kind of boundary here and, if she was wrong about everything, it could end very poorly for her.

Snape took out his wand and muttered "Alohamora." He tried the door again and nothing happened. Almost desperately, he tried a few more spells and none of them worked.

"It won't unlock unless you know the exact spell I used. I didn't want you taking off again."

"Granger, let me out of here this instant! There are going to be serious repercussions for this if you don't!" She could hear the anger in his voice and faltered for a second. She quickly regained herself though and reached for her bed. When she found it, she sat down and spoke to him.

"I'm not letting you out until you tell me about the potion that you spilled on me."


	10. Chapter 10

(Well, here's another chapter! I can't believe that I've gone so long without updating and now suddenly, I can't stop writing!

I really like where this is going. I was lost before but I've got a goal now but I think that you knew that.

And, of course, my thanks goes out to those who are commenting and reading. Without you, I wouldn't have the motivation to keep writing like this!

Like always, let me know what you think or where I'm going with it. I love reading the foreshadowing of the readers!

Anyway, enough of that.

I don't own anything!)

_She can't be serious._ "You can't be serious." Severus Snape couldn't help but to feel pride for the seventh year student. She was brilliant without a doubt. He hadn't heard her place any spell on the door, meaning that she had, at the very least, a grasping at wordless magick. Such a thing was difficult for much older and experienced witches and wizards, let alone a witch that was still in school.

On the other hand, it had been a long time since a student was brave enough to test his patience so sorely. This showed a certain stupidity that made his blood heat up. He proceeded to stand straight and let go of the door handle. "I demand that you let me out."

Hermione wasn't looking at him but she could practically hear his anger in his seething words. They chilled her ever so slightly but she held her ground against the caged Potion's Master. "Not until you tell me about the Potion." She heard him make a noise like a strangled animal and she softened her approach. "I'm really sorry but I tried to ask you earlier but you left."

"Of course I left, foolish girl. It's none of your business what I do in my spare time, what potions I brew, or what kind of music I fancy. I am your instructor. You are my student. How dare you have the audacity to trap me like this! Now let me out!"

Hermione reacted to his anger and snapped, "Either you tell me about the potion and your reason for brewing it or you'll be my new roommate because I'm not unlocking the door!" Her blind eyes flashed at him, rivaling his own dangerous glare and startling him slightly. Her nostrils flared as she fought to keep her volume down.

Snape studied her and recognized the stubborn passion. _Doesn't mean that I'll be honest with her. _He walked from the door, circled her bed and stopped in front of her desk. He saw the food on the tray and asked her if she was hungry.

Hermione must have misheard him. She heard him walk from the door and stop somewhere near her desk. She then heard the _clink_ of silverware and she could suddenly smell food.

"I didn't bring this food so that it adds to the décor. Come over here and eat."

She stiffened, not sure how to react. Before she had a chance though, she was grabbed roughly by her upper arms. She protested but was dropped on the desk chair before she got three words out. "Eat." Snape's voice was curt again.

"If I eat, will you tell me?" A fork was placed in her hand by cool fingers.

"Eat," he repeated, sounding very much like a caveman in his singular use of vocabulary. Hermione heard him move away.

Unsure of his sudden change, she felt around in front of her and began to eat the hot pasta from the plate.

Snape stood against the wall about ten feet away from her. He crossed his arms and his legs, suddenly feeling insecure and out of his element. He watched her eat the pasta and move onto the bread, which was still fluffy and warm. Even blind, she moved gently and carefully, feeling with her fingers and never dropping a crumb of food.

When she neared the end of meal and washed it down with a goblet of pumpkin juice, he told her that another vial of dittany extract was just to her left. "You're due for another dose." The tray of food disappeared when she replaced the goblet.

Hermione was actually starting to worry. Where did the anger go? He seems complacent now. Is he willing to talk? Or is he acting…kindly… for the hell of it? She ignored what he said about the dittany on the desk and turned in the direction of her nightstand. "I've already started that vial."

Without any further prompting, he crossed the room and handed it to her. "Just take the dosage."

She did and her vision improved slightly through the stinging. She could now see very fuzzy shapes with varying shades of light and darkness. She could at least make out the outline of Snape standing by her dresser.

He watched as she corked the vial and put it with the other on her desk. "Does it help?"

"With every application, yes." She was looking directly at him now. "I can tell that you're standing by the dresser but I don't see any color and everything is really blurry."

Snape murmured a response that she didn't hear.

The air between them hung thickly for a few minutes and the silence drew out longer until Hermione asked her question quietly. "If you won't tell me why you brewed the potion, can you tell me why you were walking the corridors with it?"

He regarded her through narrowed eyes but answered through tight lips. "The potion was to be brewed underground, but simmered under the first rays of morning. I was carrying the finished product back to the dungeons from the Astronomy Towers in vials when you ran into me and destroyed them."

"Oh." His answer was seemingly a little harsh and she had to bite her tongue to stop from cutting him back. Instead, she asked another question, thinking that it might help to keep it going. "You cancelled your classes to brew it?"

Snape watched as she flinched at his first answer and he felt the tiniest bit guilty. He softened his second answer to her. "Yes. It needed my full attention or it would spoil and be about as useful as a cauldron of pig-" He stopped and rephrased his sentence. "Er… It wouldn't turn out in the correct fashion."

She sighed and stepped into the harsher topic. "I've read about a potion that had all of the ingredients that you told Madame Pomfrey. If brewed correctly, it would make the drinker numb to his emotions." He didn't say anything so she went on. "They use it in St. Mungo's for people who have suffered severe shocks and whatnot. I can't remember the name though…"

"It's called _Apathamenta_. It shouldn't be a hard word to remember. It does what the name says. 'Apathy'. And you're correct in your rendition of the readings."

"So… that's the potion that you were brewing?" She was hesitant and her thoughts flashed back to the door. She hoped that the charm would hold.

"Yes."

She swallowed hard. "That's what I was afraid of." Her speech was quiet.

"Why?" His voice was snappish again. "Why do you care? Your ailment is not permanent. What concern do you have for the potions that I brew?"

"I-I just thought that-" But she was interrupted by an irate Snape.

"Did you think for a minute that maybe I worked for St. Mungo's in my spare time? Or that I was possibly brewing some for another Healer? Madame Pomfrey does keep a weaker back stock of it in the Hospital Wing. She uses it when these hormone-ridden teenagers have their breakdowns over damned relationships" His voice was quiet in his dangerous manner and he could see Hermione shrinking. He stepped towards her as he continued. "Of course you didn't. You assumed right away that Professor Snape was using it for himself. You guessed that I've used it for a long time. It's why no student has ever seen any emotion other than anger or annoyance from me."

He was right in front of her chair now. He kneeled down and pressed his face close to hers. She could feel his cool breath on her skin and she couldn't move. "Because Hermione Granger has to be right about everything. Doesn't she?"


	11. Chapter 11

(This is the shortest chapter I've written so far. I tried to add more to it but I just HAD to stop it there. It needed the break for dramatic effect, I think. Oh, ever the drama lover I am!

Anyway, this chapter was harder to write than the others. I couldn't see Snape just giving in to her Hermione's questioning without problems. And I sure as hell couldn't see Hermione giving into his threatening demeanor. There were a couple of times that I had to stop writing to go listen to music or something to try to clear thoughts out again.

Well, enjoy this one. The next chapter will be up tonight or tomorrow.

Let's hope that writer's block NEVER comes back.

As always, I don't own anything!)

"Doesn't she?"

He repeated himself when Hermione didn't answer right away. His voice was locked into an evil hiss and she was very intimidated. But she wasn't a fool and she was often too stubborn to back down from any confrontation. It was her best guess that Snape wasn't aware of this. It was why he was now trying to scare her into submission.

"You were the intended recipient for the Apathamenta." She answered strongly and clearly, defying him in a way that very few had the nerve to do. She awaited him to hit her or to yell. She fully expected some kind outburst or emotional break. When none came, Hermione was afraid to move. Had she crossed the line? _Without a doubt._

Snape had frozen on the spot. His threatening demeanor hadn't worked. He didn't know where to go or what to do from there. To retreat would make him look like a frightened wolf with his tail between his legs. But, the Potion's Master was beaten at his own game and he knew it.

The tension between the two grew and he moved first, to Hermione's intense shock. Rather than verbally answer her, he breathed through his nose and stood up straight. She watched as his blurry form moved away and to her bed in a very stiff manner. He sat down and seemed to watch her. It was hard to tell though, because she couldn't make out his details.

Snape felt defeated with morose amazement. He fooled the entire wizarding world, even Dumbledore, with the act that he just showed the seventh year witch and she hadn't even blinked. She had blindly stared him down, tossing aside his rough words like they were droplets of harmless water. Severus Snape stared at the stone floor.

"Professor…" The girl's voice was soft, barely a whisper, and it slid through his ear drums like the soft coo of a mourning dove. It then seemed to travel down towards his chest to wrap around his pounding heart. He felt the tightening again, like he had in the shower, and he forced up a surge of anger to stop it. He shook from his efforts and he clenched his fists, digging his nails into the palms of his hands. She couldn't see these small movements… but would she hear the grinding of his teeth or the drum beat of his heart? He silently prayed for this last dignity from any god that would listen to him.

His prayers were clearly ignored though when she slowly rose from her spot and slid her chair out of the way. Her steps were steady on the stone floor as she made her way to the bed. An outsider looking in would assume that she had just regained her sight by the way that she moved; with utter determination. She halted in front of him but didn't speak.

Snape looked up to find her eyes sparkling with tears, despite the low glow of the candles in the room. They hovered in her eyes, refusing to fall, highlighting the hazel tinting that surrounded her pupil. Still, her head was held up, straight and tall and her lips were set in a thin line. She still wasn't budging on the topic.

The silence grew louder and louder until Snape broke it. In hesitant, broken speech, he uttered the only sentence he could string together. "Y-You're right."

"Tell me why." She wasn't giving him any break. Hermione wanted information from him and she was going to grill him with questions until she was satisfied.

He wasn't sure what to say or how to say it. This woman was asking the impossible from him. She clearly wanted his thoughts and feeling verbalized. Snape had only done that once before and he was bullied for the rest of his school life because of it. "Professor, why did you brew the potion for yourself?"

"Isn't it obvious?" He tried to stop the snarky comment from escaping but it was the only defense he had at the moment. In his desperation, he prayed for her to leave him alone, to leave the topic where it was. He wanted to leave the room and never face her again. But Hermione wasn't letting him leave. She didn't react to the comment. Instead, she just kept quiet, waiting for the answer.

"I don't want… to feel." His words were as quiet as he could make them. Hermione was scarce sure he really spoke. But she knew he did and a single tear fell from her eye as he continued to speak. "It's not worth such… pain." He stopped to breathe and she could hear him fight to compose himself, hiding the emotions he felt through the sneer that she knew was on his face. "Apathy… is the only way to… tolerate life."

He waited for her to move, to speak, to verbally beat him down or to say that he was wrong. He waited but nothing came. He watched another tear escaped from her lashes and hit the stone floor.

Then…

Hermione hit him.


	12. Chapter 12

(My note is at the bottom this time. This is the second copy of this chapter. I woke up this morning and had to edit it. I rushed it so much last night because it was close to one in the morning and I wanted to sleep. .

I own nothing!)

Or she tried to.

Snape saw the blow coming before it was halfway there. As if in slow motion, he watched as the spunky seventh year drew her fist back and thrust it in the direction of his face. Despite all of her strengths, Hermione just wasn't a physical fighter and Snape was able to snatch her wrist before she found her target.

The quick movement was enough to break the complete tension of the moment. Snape jerked her whole arm and snarled, "What is your fucking problem?"

Hermione let out a strangled sob, partly due to the flare of pain she experienced in her arm. The other part was because of her failed, half-hearted attempt at knocking sense into the stubborn man in front of her. "Let me go!" She stomped her foot like a child. "Someone's got to care about you, especially if you don't give a damn about yourself!"

Snape's eyes widened. "Attempting to break my nose is caring? You wonder why I'd rather experience apathy!"

This particular comment set fire to Hermione and she did her best to aim a kick at his leg. She missed and hit the bed but Snape had already acted accordingly. In a swift, fluid movement, Hermione was suddenly stomach-down on the comforter, Snape's body pressing hers into submission. His cool hands kept her arms under control in the small of her back.

She sputtered and tried to break free but she wasn't a match for him. "That's twice you've tried to do physical harm to me, Granger." His voice was laced with a tone that Hermione didn't recognize from him underneath the normal threats. She worked to catch her breath from the shock.

Snape pinned her down with little effort to save himself from any pitiful blow she could deal but quickly, his thoughts changed tracks. With her underneath him, he pressed himself against her and through the robes felt the warmth from her agitation. He felt his groin begin to tighten much like his chest had earlier but this was a new feeling entirely.

That scent of lavender and vanilla was there again, filling his nose. He murmured his threat in her hair, noting to himself that his voice sounded sexually aroused. With a silent curse to his body, he pushed off of her and took a few steps back. His breath was ragged now and he hoped to pass it off as physical exertion. She had flipped over now, robe askew from the struggle.

His eyes darted to the cleavage that she had unknowingly showed him before she was quick to fix her robe. He swallowed and tried to calm his pounding heart and fraying nerves. "I've answered your questions, Granger. Let me out now." His voice was now of forced calm. It didn't hold nearly as much malice as it had earlier in the night.

Hermione felt as flustered as he sounded as she shook her head. "No. You haven't answered all of them. I have more."

"Of course you do. You're insatiable." He could have groaned at the open innuendo that he unwittingly let out of his mouth in his snarky fashion. But at that thought, he was looking at her lips, full and red, irritated from being pressed onto the comforter. He actually had to physically shake himself to rid his mind of the thoughts. "What do you want to know now?"

She attempted to smooth out her hair as she took a deep breath, a little disconcerted at his tone that bothered her because she was afraid that she would mirror it. She gave herself a few seconds to calm down and she asked "Do you have any of the _Apathamenta_ left?"

Luckily, some of his annoyance with the girl came back and he could start putting his thoughts back into order. "No. You successfully destroyed the entire batch."

"Have you taken it before?"

He stared her down again, wondering why she was still interrogating him and why he was still answering her. "Once, while I was still in school. It lasted two or three years. Long enough for me to graduate and to move on."

She swallowed and boldly stood up. "You took it when Lily Potter rejected you."

Snape sputtered in anger. _How does she know? How dare she-! I can't believe—_

"You took it when you became the target of James' taunts and malice."

Snape continue to shoot daggers out of his eyes at her. It had no effect because she couldn't see him, but she knew how angry he was. He could hear it in his silence. She could feel it in the air. It made her mentally shiver, wondering how badly he wanted to hurt her.

When he finally unstuck his tongue, all he could manage was "How dare you."

She continued to look at him as she closed the distance between them. She was now only about six inches from him. Here, she could feel the tension as he clenched his fists and resisted the need to breathe. She was sure he wanted to hit her but wouldn't.

Snape fought the urge to strike her down. _The cheeky bitch. _This conversation had gone far enough. His nails cut into the palms of his hands and he was almost sure that he was dripping blood on the stone floor. His lips were set into the thinnest possible line and his eyes burned with a murderous intensity. It was taking every fiber of control he had not to hit her. It was taking so much from him that he couldn't physically speak, even if he could find the words.

"She didn't deserve you."

Through rage-induced pounding in his ears, he was sure that he misheard her. Still struggling with himself, he forced out "What?"

"Lily didn't deserve you." Hermione repeated herself with resolve, knowing that this was the defining moment of the entire night. She meant what she said, too.

One by one, Snape's muscles began to relax but his heart continued to pound. He stumbled backwards into the desk as his knees unclenched. Disbelief clouded his mind. _What is she saying? I haven't heard her correctly._ He shut his eyes for exactly three seconds, trying to make some kind of sense of what was happening.

"Meaning what?" His voice was hoarse now, both from disbelief and the constant change in intense emotions.

And then, a sudden knock at the chamber door made both of them jump out of their skin. Snape bumped a jar of pens off of the desk and it shattered, sending pieces of glass scattering across the floor. "Hermione?" It was Harry's voice that called through the door. He sounded worried. "I just spoke to Madame Pomfrey. She told me what happened. What has that git done to you?"

"Quick!" Hermione hissed as she pushed a very confused Snape toward the washroom. Her own heart was pounding itself out of her chest. Harry could NOT find Snape in her bedchamber. She would NEVER be able to explain herself. "Hide!" Still stunned and startled, he didn't argue as he shut the door behind him. "Hold on, Harry!"

Harry listened from outside the door in a confused manner when he heard the sound of breaking glass followed by shuffling and footsteps.

Hermione unlocked the door and opened it. "Hermione, you look a mess!" He glanced past her. The bed covers were askew and there was broken glass on the floor. "What happened here?"

"Oh, nothing!" Her voice was higher than usual as he stepped inside. "Just trying to acclimate to being blind, you know! What are you doing here?

He arched an eyebrow as he regarded her through dark eyelashes. "I ran into Madame Pomfrey and she told me what happened with Snape earlier today. Ron and I hadn't been able to find you so I came up here after I was done talking to her. Are you alright?"

"Fine! Never better. Just, you know, me."

"Alright…" His speech was slow and unsure. "Are you sure? Can I get you anything? Something to eat? Or drink? Would you like me to curse the greasy haired, pathetic excuse for a professor? Or… I could at least clean up this mess?" He pointed his wand at the class and said "Reparo!" Then he bent down and picked up the whole jar to replace on her desk.

Hermione let out a nervous giggle at Harry's insults of the Potion's Master. "It's alright, Harry! Don't worry! But I'm dreadfully tired. Could you come back tomorrow morning?"

"I could, yes." He regarded her through his glasses with an almost stern look. "Are you sure that you're quite alright? You seem more... neurotic than usual."

"I'm fine, Harry! Don't worry!" The conversation ended there and Hermione was blissfully happy to get rid of him. Now just was not the time.

She waited until the sounds of his footsteps went away and then shuffled to the washroom and opened it. "Professor?" She could see nothing that looked like him. Then she felt the cool breeze against her face.

Then she discovered that the window was open.

And Snape was gone.

(Hahahaha! I'm sorry, guys! I know that the last part seems very rushed but I just couldn't have them reveal their feelings for each other just yet! I just couldn't!

I hope that you aren't too annoyed with me!

Oh, and as you can see, the story is going to start progressing towards the rating of "M", so I'm warning you now. Things are going to get explicit!

Well, I think that's enough for one day!

Please review and comment for me!)


	13. Chapter 13

(This chapter is short and lacking in any action. It's just a bridge to the next chapter, which I should post up sometime tomorrow.

I must admit, the decision for Snape to escape through her window was impulsive of me and I wasn't sure where to go after that. I'm clear on it now, it just took a lot of thought and scrapped versions of the following chapters.

Again, nothing too important here. Just a bridge.

I own nothing!)

…_She didn't deserve you…_

The young witch's words haunted Snape all the way back down to the dungeons. The almost-incident with a meddling Potter and his escape through the washroom window were all a blur to him. But the words that Hermione said were painfully clear. His legs worked furiously as he all but ran towards his quarters.

_Coward_, he cursed himself. _Why did you run? The chances of Granger letting Potter near that door were nonexistent yet you took the first opportunity you saw to flee! What are you so afraid of? _The answer to that question was obvious but the tormented man would not allow himself to think it.

He came to safely seal himself in his chamber, igniting the wood in the grate, and setting flame to the candles for light. With these tasks done, Snape stood still for a moment, looking around his living area, searching for something to hold his attention. With nothing to distract him, he was forced to think and to relive the events of the night through his mind.

Hermione was more than annoyed. _I should have charmed the window too!_ She had no way of predicting how the visit would have ended but she didn't think that this was it. _Harry! He just had to do the "good friend" song and dance! He ruined it! _She felt lost in her own space and she headed towards her bed. Sitting on the edge, she reached for the nightstand and pulled out a lacey, black nightie and changed into it, leaving her bathrobe on the back of a chair.

Using her wand, she extinguished the candles in her room then laid down underneath the sheets. Her thoughts ran wild and her heart still raced underneath her bosom. _Severus Snape…_ His name was spinning through her mind as she replayed the night's events. Not everything went according to plan but she knew that he was thinking about it now, unable to just let it go. _As long as he knows that someone cares… I can live with that. _She closed her eyes.

Snape wasn't as lucky in his dungeon suite, sleep avoiding him like a lamb might avoid a lion, fearing for its very life. He was laid across the top of his bed, still fully clothed and wide awake, pulling up ghosts of old memories that seemed appropriate, given the events that had just occurred.

He recalled the images of brewing the potion his first time in a clearing just inside of the Forbidden Forest. There, he had dug a deep hole to satisfy the "underground" requirement and to assure himself that he wouldn't get caught. These were the technical aspects but as he tried to revive the emotions that he was feeling that pushed him to such an extreme, he found that he couldn't. That was probably a side effect of the potion that few people would be aware of. Maybe it killed the phantoms of emotions, as well.

He began to wonder if he had just been too weak back then. Were his troubles really any worse than that of an average teenager? Had he ruined his school years by taking a seriously damaging potion? Could that be why Granger was so concerned at the prospect of him taking it again?

Even if all of those questions could be easily answered, there was one major weight on his shoulders: Why did Granger care at all?

Her words were staying with him. No one had ever tried with such effort to get into his head. He had also never let anyone in past his defenses. The girl was resilient. That much was beyond clear. And stubborn, too. Was she likely to give up since he ran once more? Did he honestly want her to?

_I have to see her again. _

The straightforward, clear thought shocked him and he locked it away quickly, knowing that he would try to argue it right away. _If Granger wants so badly to talk, then we shall talk. But when?_

He knew which window was hers but there were too many problems with that. One, he was lucky to have survived the climb down from the tower the first time. Two, it was too inappropriate. He wasn't going to spy on her. Three, if someone saw him, it would create an uproar that would be hard to explain away.

He made up his mind then to visit her the next night. He would go to Madame Pomfrey and offer to take her supper to her again, saying that he felt responsible for her condition. _No. Delete the last part. That's going too far and the Healer might get suspicious. The rest of it will work_ _though._

With a suddenly energized bound out of his bed, he crossed to his dresser and picked up the vial that was labeled "sleeping draught". He swallowed the bottle in one gulp and lay back down on his bed. He couldn't talk himself out of the visit if he was sleeping and that was his plan. Snape was passed out before he could form a logical argument.


	14. Chapter 14

(Okay. Here's another chapter. I realize that Snape is acting OOC again but I'm starting to like this side of him. It's kind of cute!

It's a longer chapter and I could really use some feedback on it. Constructive criticism is a must! I live to rewrite and revise! And the best critics I have are the people who are reading! DZMom always does an amazing job at writing her reviews and I often make changes based on what she says! Thanks! That's the only way I get better at writing! I read your comments, ladies and gents!

Please and thank you. I'm on break for school now so expect even more chapters and a new story altogether is in the making! I'm not sure what kind of fanfiction it'll be though. Perhaps Smallville or Superman (which are the initial shows that got me into writing fanfictions).

I am going to warn you though... The Chapter 15 is going to be on the mature side. I've hinted at it so far but haven't been brave enough to really get into it. I'm not entirely confident in my erotic writing abilities so be nice! lol You don't want to scare me away from writing for a while, I hope!

Anyway, enjoy! Another chapter should be up tomorrow!

Light and love to everyone!

I don't own anything!)

The next day was a strange one for Hermione. For one, she slept through breakfast and brunch, refusing to wake up until nearly noon. Harry's early-morning persistent knocking didn't have an effect and she didn't budge when Madame Pomfrey charmed her door open to check on her. When she did awaken, she was disoriented because her vision didn't clear up right away, as it normally did. It took her a few minutes of panic to remember what happened the previous day and that she had been excused from all of her classes, as well. Once she was calmed down, she remembered the dittany and applied it right away.

Her vision improved again, but the light streaming in through the windows hurt her sensitive eyes and with a wave of her wand, she closed the drapes. After that, she showered and then bustled about the room, cleaning and dusting, knowing full well that she was only trying to distract herself from the memories of the previous night.

By around three in the afternoon, she was beginning to go stir crazy because she wasn't accustomed to staying inside her room for so long. She took another dose of the dittany and her eyes dramatically improved. Though fuzzy, she now felt like she just needed a strong pair of glasses instead of feeling completely blind. Hermione still couldn't read, however, and this was the part that bothered her the most.

She was looking forward to Madame Pomfrey bringing her supper, even if it was just to have someone to talk to.

Snape wasn't as lucky to sleep in. When the sleeping draught wore off, he woke up in a groggy state and showered to make him a little more alert. He held classes during the morning, doing his best to ignore the darker stares of Potter and Weasley. He assumed that both of them were informed of the incident and that explained their sudden increased hostility. He did his best to overlook them though, especially because his eyes often came to rest on the empty seat beside Potter.

Holding his classes, as per normal, was required to distract him from the coming evening. Much to his dismay, he hadn't forgotten about his resolve upon waking and he bound himself to the plan. He knew he wouldn't go through with it if he thought too much about another excursion to her chambers. The idea itself was foolish to even consider, but he felt strangely excited, almost like he looked forward to it. _You're stepping into dangerous territory…_ He told himself that more than once as a free moment allowed him the time to think. _You're stepping into dangerous territory and you're doing it willingly. You're mental._

His classes were all finished by four in the afternoon and he retreated to his chamber to scrub the frog guts from his skin. He had been instructing the third years by the end of the work day how to disembowel the amphibians correctly for potion work. A migraine had formed from listening to the sounds of squealing, squeamish females complaining about touching the raw flesh. His throat was a tad bit raw from raising his voice, as well. He marveled at the immaturity he was forced to deal with.

When he was done cleaning himself up, he went through his private stores, throwing out old ingredients and making a list of what he needed to acquire for upcoming brews. It was busy work, really, something to make the time pass. It was failing epically, in any case. Eventually, he lost his patience and started handwriting the lesson he gave to the seventh years that day. The Granger girl was sure to fear falling behind in her courses while she was out of class. Besides, it was another prime excuse for him to visit her.

When the clock rolled over to seven, Snape made a beeline from his quarters to the Hospital Wing after diligently cleaning himself with another shower. He fought against the crowd of students that were coming from the Great Hall and was rather pleased to find that Madame Pomfrey extremely busy with a hoard of students who had come down with the flu-like symptoms.

She barely looked at Snape as she searched for fresh linens and he explained why he was there. "What? Granger? Yes, of course. Thank you for your help, Severus. I'm not sure what it is but everyone is getting sick. I can't leave right now. Yes, you're right. We mustn't let her starve. The tray is by the door. Thanks again."

With a small smile to himself, he picked up the tray and headed towards Hermione.

"Again?" The Fat Lady was exasperated at seeing Potions Master entreating entrance into her tower. "When did you start making house calls?"

"When Madame Pomfrey became busy and needed the assistance." His answer was short but polite. The Fat Lady narrowed her eyes.

"Are you sweet on the Healer?" She cleared her throat. "I've been hanging here for a long time and I hear things. The students talk, you know. You never leave the dungeons. And never help any of the other professors out. And if the students don't fear you, they hate you. Not really the sociable or personable one, are you?" She crossed her arms.

"Need I explain myself to you? I think not. Higgle-pig."

The Fat Lady hesitated before swinging open to admit him. Once again, Snape climbed into the portrait hole.

Thankfully, today, the common room was devoid of life and he was able to cross to the stairs without encountering the confused faces of the dunderheaded students. He paused outside of Granger's door, holding his breath. Then, he kicked the bottom of the door frame with his foot to alert her of his visitation.

Around seven in the evening, Hermione was growing hungry. A hour earlier she had taken a relaxing bubble bath in chamomile tea. Ever the studious seventh year, she was still a woman and missed the more Muggle aspects of her life. At Hogwarts, she was always moving and had little time to enjoy the finer things in life. Today was the first day in a long time that she had a chance to sleep in and she thought that the warm bath would be a great way to end it.

Afterwards, she spent some time conditioning her hair, trying to cut down on the frizz that had built up over time. She used her wand to gently dry her hair and then she brushed it until it was smooth.

Knowing that Madame Pomfrey would be the last one to visit her, she donned another nightie. This one was pink and made of silk. She took another dose of dittany and felt her eyes heal further. _Two more_, she thought, holding up the vial to a candle, _and I should be completely back to normal. Three maybe._

She was cleaning the residue out of the tub when she heard a bang at her door. Assuming it was Madame Pomfrey, she called "It's unlocked! Come in!" With her head in the tub, she didn't look up as she heard the door creak open and then close again. "Thank you for bringing me my supper. I'm sorry that I wasn't awake this morning, I don't know what happened." She looked up to see Snape gawking at her.

The two just stared at each other for a moment. Snape was in shock at seeing her… barely dressed and it took Hermione a few seconds to focus on his face. "What are YOU doing here?" She stood up and strode toward her bed, trying to hide her cleavage with crossed arms. She got there and threw her robe back on. Tying it, she glared at him. "Well?" She noted that she could feel her face burning with embarrassment. No male ever saw her dressed like that.

He cleared his throat and then diverted his eyes. "I-Um… brought your supper again." He put it on the desk. "And the notes that you missed in class today." He pulled them out of his robe and dropped them beside her tray. "How is your sight?"

"Better." Hermione regarded him sternly. "Who took the notes? Hopefully not Harry or Ron. I can't read their handwriting." She kept her arms crossed and went to pick up the folded parchment. The fluid script was blurry to her but she could tell it was written by practiced hand. She didn't recognize it.

"I… rewrote the lesson plan. I was sure that you wouldn't want to fall behind in your coursework." He broke eye contact with her, feeling almost embarrassed. He wasn't fond of these emotions and he sought to replace the scowl that often lived on his face. It didn't quite work.

"Are you alright?" She could see his contorted expression and she arched an eyebrow.

"Fine."

Hermione looked at him strangely before she folded up the notes and placed them on top of one of her text books. She glanced at the tray of food and then back at Snape. Reaching for her wand, she conjured another plate, more silverware and a goblet. She also silently replaced the lock charm on her door. Snape didn't notice the latter.

"Professor, thank you for the notes. Have you eaten yet?"

He watched her wand movements intently, focusing on the flick of her wrist and the gentle, yet firm grip she held. _She's graceful… Why didn't I notice that before? And… for someone who works so hard she has such delicate and soft hands…_ When she spoke, he blinked to clear his thoughts. "What? No, I haven't. I have food back in my quarters."

She sat down at her desk and another chair appeared. "Why don't you share a meal with me? I'd like to thank you for being so kind… I know it's… unusual." His ears detected an almost-insult but a soft smile played across her lips.

He didn't answer her, unsure of an excuse to use. He settled for accepting without words and sat in the empty chair beside her.


	15. Chapter 15

(Okay. So here's another chapter.

I had a hell of a time with this. I'm not good at writing about arousal at all so I constant struggled with my wording. Even now, posting this, I'm unsure as to how the readers will react to it.

I know that I said that this chapter would be heavy on the Mature content but... no. Not this one. lol Maybe the next one. I'm not sure where I'm going to take it now so I'll have to think about it.

I'm sure you guys will have something to say and I look forward to hearing it. Just be nice? LOL.

I took DZMom's advice from one of her reviews and had Snape do a bit of a flashback to her leaning over the bathtub. I think I avoided in the first time subconsciously for one reason or another.

Well... Let me know what you think!)

Hermione was smiling slightly as she split up the roast beef, vegetables, and Yorkshire pudding between the two plates. She didn't speak and Snape was trying not to fidget in his chair. His eyes kept scanning the length of her smooth legs while she was occupied elsewhere. The robe started at her knee, hiding the skin that hid underneath but his thoughts flashed back to the precious few moments before she put on the fluffy barrier.

Her thighs had been smooth and golden, the latter being unusual for the climate they lived in, and her pink nightie flowed against them like a fluid. The hint of lace that had run around the hem was like a tease, allowing him to see just a bit of what moved underneath. Her hips were curved and shapely, something that he hadn't noticed about her ever before. The silk hugged her curves, gently reflecting the candle light as she was bent over the bathtub and, for a split second, he had imagined what he could have done if she were leaned over the bed in the same fashion.

"Would you like some pumpkin juice?" Her honey-sweet voice interrupted his thoughts and he took notice of her pink, plump lips again. They were soft and supple-looking.

_I wonder what she tastes like…_"Please." He wasn't sure he could trust his own speech at that moment so he kept his answer to one word. Snape was attempting to control his thoughts when she reached over him, pouring the juice into his goblet. The movement in his direction caused her scent to head straight to his nose. She smelled delightfully feminine, like chamomile and lavender and the two fragrances together seemed to have a direct effect on his manhood.

His eyes darted from her at once and he cleared his throat abruptly. "Yes?" Her eyes flashed at his.

"I think that's enough. Thank you." She saw him swallow and she arched an eyebrow.

"Alright? Well… Enjoy then!" She picked up her silverware and began eating. Snape followed suit.

They didn't talk, allowing the clinks of the china to fill the silence and he watched her eat out of the corner of his eyes. Every time she slid the fork into her mouth, he would feel a little thrill of excitement at the way her lips parted and then sealed themselves around the utensil. He fought to focus on the food on not on her. It didn't work.

When they had finished and the dishes had disappeared, the awkward silence continued with neither of them being sure what to say. Hermione fidgeted uncomfortably, finally realizing that she was under his close scrutinization. It made her suddenly paranoid with having him so close so she cleared her throat and reached for his handwritten notes. Thumbing through them, she asked "Where did you learn to write so beautifully? I know few members of the male species that can write legibly, let alone with grace."

The question distracted him slightly as he thought about how to answer. "Penmanship used to be one of the core requirements at Hogwarts when I was a student here. It's since been taken out of the curriculum."

"I wonder why. It's a shame… So… you came to bring my supper and my notes… I feel like there's something else on your mind." She looked at him almost hopefully, wondering if he had intended to carry on the previous night's conversation.

"Something else?" _Yes, I do have something else on my mind, like ogling your body outside of that blasted robe and feeling that silk rub against my bare chest. _He found that he couldn't fully recall the memories of the night before. The erection that had stuck around for the duration of the meal distracted him and controlled his thoughts without effort.

Her cheeks grew a little pink in frustration. "Yes, something else. Like what I said last night." The tiny scowl that drew across her lips brought back the memories of the night before.

… _She didn't deserve you…_

"Oh… I remember. You said that Lily Potter didn't deserve me."

Hermione looked shocked at his bluntness as it was something that she hadn't expected. The night before, she had prompted most of his speech but now, it seemed like that wasn't needed. "I-I did, yes. You didn't get a chance to respond after that."

"I wondered why you would say such a thing. I thought about what drew you to that conclusion. I didn't form my own answers though, preferring to assume that you would explain yourself if I gave you the time." His voice seemed to purr like a finely-tuned car engine as he spoke and Hermione struggled to place what it was that she heard in his voice. It sounded familiar but not familiar enough that she could immediately place it.

…_That's twice you've tried to do physical harm to me, Granger…_

Hermione hid her eyes as she recalled the memory in which he spoke like that. It was just the previous night when he had her pinned underneath of him on her bed. She bit her lip.

"Or not." Hermione had taken too long to answer and his rumbling voice brought her back to the present.

She started and looked back at him, feeling a tingling sensation between her legs. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean to-"

"No matter." His voice had turned sharp again, which led Hermione to think that he had suddenly lost interest when she hadn't answered right away. "I should be going back to the dungeons." He stood up, turning from her quickly. "I'll be expecting you back in class as soon as Madame Pomfrey clears you."

"Wait!" She got up to follow him as he started to talk towards the door. "We should probably talk."

He hesitated, stopping in the middle of her floor. Turning to look at her, he was stunned.

Her robe was no longer on her body, tossed on the chair carelessly.

His eyebrows disappeared into his hairline as he was allowed the opportunity to read the bookworm like fine text. The silk nightie that she wore didn't leave much to the imagination around her cleavage. Her nipples were erect and straining against the silk. Snape swore that he could see the darkened area around them through the material, though it might have just been a trick of the light.

Hermione knew by the way he was looking at her that she had gotten his attention effectively. What she hadn't expected was the hungry look that was in his eyes and the effect that it was having on her. She could feel her nipples tighten and she knew she was giving off heat in the chilly room.

But she was very self-conscience. Her boldness reserve had been used a lot in the past two days and the bright red intensity of her cheeks was a sharp stinging. It woke her up enough for her to reach for her robe again.

Snape made a sudden movement in her direction but then slammed on his brakes. The gears in **both** of his brains were refusing to cooperate with each other. It was enough to make her stop though and he let out a sharp breath through his nose.

"Talking is good. You're right. We should talk."

Her smile came back and she headed for her bed with Snape watching the silk cling to her hips and rear end. "Then let's talk, Professor."

She sat down and waited for him to follow.


	16. Chapter 16

(So here's another chapter. This one took me a long while because I didn't know what to do. I decided that I didn't want Snape and Hermione being sexual yet but I wasn't sure how to end that particular scene for the time being. What you read below is the end result and it works for what I wanted to achieve.

Sorry guys. But I don't think that the characters were ready for that yet. If you can't be sure of your actions then you shouldn't be having sex!

Now, I've introduced a more complicated thing to the story. Pay attention to the end. While I didn't type that until the last minute, I like it. Though dramatic, I'm interested to see where it goes.

This chapter is shorter than usual but that's okay. I'll be working on the next one shortly.

I started another fanfiction. That one is called "A New Assignment" and it's based off of Smallville. It's written in the first person point of view and the main character is one of my own. As a matter of fact, the story gives huge detail about me and who I am. It's not well written yet because it's in the newborn stages but most of my creative energy is going into that one for right now. I'll still be working on this one, don't worry but check out the other one and leave me some criticism! You know I love it so much!

It may not be your cup of tea though so I understand. LOL

Anyway, I do not own anything here!)

Shyness aside, Hermione couldn't ignore the wetness between her legs. As she sat on the bed and beckoned Snape forward with just her eyes, she lightly traced a finger across her chest. Though she could pull off the sexy temptress façade with ease, it didn't mean that she was comfortable in her own skin. But her arousal wasn't going to be ignored, despite herself.

It fooled Snape though as he grew painfully harder at the sight before him. Even the feeling on the material of his robes brushing against his member felt wonderful. He was not a man to be in a state of arousal often and he was annoyed to see how easily the girl got him going. With a few sexy glances and a crook of her finger, he could feel a small amount of pre-cum dripping from the tip of him from underneath his robes. _What? I've got to be kidding myself._ _This is shameful. I can't be so close this soon!_ He didn't move any closer to her, afraid of the slightest sensation pushing him over the edge and to the land of no return.

Hermione tilted her head to the side and regarded him with a queer expression. He hadn't moved. He was just standing there, staring at her. He looked strained though, like something was wrong and she faltered just a bit. "Are you alright?"

"May I use your toilet?"

"My t-toilet? Of course-"

He didn't wait for her to finish before rushing towards the bathroom. Once the door was closed, he spilled over and soiled the inside of his robes. Even safely away from Hermione's prying eyes, his cheeks burned a bright red in his embarrassment.

He peeled away the layers of robes to clean them with a well-placed charm, disgusted with himself for making such a mess like some hormone crazed teenager. Cursing out loud, he wanted to punch something, preferably the now limp and useless snake between his legs.

It didn't take long for Hermione to realize what had happened. She was no fool. But once she figured it out, it was extremely hard to keep a straight face. She actually had to stifle the sound by pressing her fist to her mouth so he wouldn't hear. She was sure that he wouldn't take kindly to that, as most men wouldn't. He would take it as an insult to his masculinity.

When Snape was clean and composed, he made his appearance again. Hermione smiled sweetly at him as she was tying up her bathrobe again. His voice was gruff as he muttered the quickest apology he could but she held up her hands to stop him.

"Shush. No need for that. Don't worry." Her smile really was golden but he was too tense now to say anything else.

_She knows what happened… How can I live that down?_ "I should probably go."

"Please don't? We really should talk about things…"

"I'm sorry. I'm sure that you've locked the door. Please unlock it."

She just looked at him, realizing that he was building a wall around himself as he spoke. She had the chance to break it but didn't get there in time and now she was being sealed out. With a little frown, she used her wand on the door from a distance and they both heard the lock pop. "I would really appreciate it if you stayed. I said that Lily didn't deserve you… Don't you want my explanation?"

Snape wanted the explanation. He didn't want to wonder anymore. But right now, his mind just was not in the right place to hear what she had to say. Though he knew better, the man was embarrassed in knowing that Granger was no fool. He felt shamed in himself and thought it best that he go back to the dungeons for a long while.

"Get well, Miss Granger." He nodded at her before sweeping towards the door.

When it was closed and latched, Hermione felt lonely and upset. _Oh please. It's not such a big deal. I mean, when was the last time he had a good shagging? It happens to guys. So what? I can see why he'd be frustrated but really! _

Her annoyance had nothing to do with Snape's prematurity though. _It would have been a mistake to even get into that now. What was I thinking? _Through this thought process, she somehow deduced that it was her fault that Snape was locked back into that poor state of mind and she wasn't sure how to rectify it.

In the dungeons, Snape was gathering potion ingredients into a leather bag. He worked in silence and numbness, closing off his thoughts about everything. With the bag packed, he headed towards the Forbidden Forest like he had when he was still a student, seeking out the clearing that had been there those years ago. Finding it, he knelt down on ground and used a small shovel to begin digging a hole.

_This time, Granger won't be ruining my plans. _


	17. Chapter 17

(Hello again! Sorry that I haven't been posting as much! I've been working on my other story for a bit while I pondered where to take this one.

I'm pretty sure that some of you will be upset with me for what I've done with this chapter but I have a plan! Never fear!

Though, I warn you, this is going to be a long story because I just came up with a new plot twist that I have to work in.

Enjoy what I have so far and as always, leave me your reviews and thoughts. I love reading them!

I don't own the Harry Potter series. )

Hermione didn't sleep that night and, as soon as the sun rose, she marched off to the Hospital Wing. She wanted Madame Pomfrey to clear her vision right away. Even though a little bit of the dittany was left, Hermione felt that her sight had returned fully. She wanted the "all-clear" to return to her classes on Monday, which was tomorrow.

The Healer bustled about her, asking her questions and asking her to read things from varying distances. By the end of it, she seemed satisfied and let Hermione go free. She left the Hospital Wing with a bounce in her step.

There weren't any classes today and Hermione wasn't hungry. However, she didn't want to go back to the dormitory after spending two days without leaving. No, she wanted human contact so she headed straight for the dungeons.

Her mind was focused on where she was going but she wasn't paying much attention to the confused Slytherins that she passed. No one spoke to her or stopped her so she continued moving. She burst into the Potions classroom and shut the door behind her.

Snape's office door was closed but that didn't stop her from pounding on it. "Professor! Professor, open your door!" With her ear pressed to the wood, she listened for any movement but heard nothing. With her lips set in a tight line, she pulled her wand out and said "Alohamora," then tried the door again. Nothing.

_He must have a stronger charm on there… but I'll never get in unless I know the exact one. Where IS he?_ Hermione searched her brain for the answer. Her best guess was that he was hiding away in his quarters but, if she couldn't get into his office, she wouldn't be getting into his chamber.

_Bloody hell._ She turned and headed out of the dungeons.

Snape, however, wasn't in the dungeons. Quite the opposite, he was standing on a balcony of the Astronomy tower, watching the sun move across the sky. At his feet, sat a bottle of freshly brewed potion. Finished, the _Apathamenta_ shimmered with a blue undertone in the sun.

_Funny_, he thought to himself, _that something that small could do a lot of damage._

His thoughts were racing. All he could think about was the night before and where things had been going before his prematurity ruined it. He had wanted Granger so badly that he couldn't hold it back.

But it was more than just sex appeal and he knew it.

_What's so appealing about her? Why does she fill my thoughts every moment of the day? Why does she haunt my dreams? And why does she care? Why is she the first person since my school days to even bother looking past my title? Past my ferocities?_

Snape bent down to pick up the bottle. The cool glass was smooth against his fingertips. He caught a glimpse of his reflection in it. His eyes were dark from staying up all night. Refusing to dwell, he looked back to the grounds and across the lake.

_I've spent most of my life here yet… have I ever called it home? Have I ever been truly happy in all those years? No… But Granger makes me feel things I have felt before… Gods help me but… when I look at her smiling… I want to smile back._

He cursed himself silently and pulled the stopper from the bottle with a little pop. _Get a grip, Severus. She's a student. An intelligent one at that. She'll wise up and cut you like women are prone to do. Drink the potion. And rid yourself of her. _

It slid down his throat easily enough, lighter than water but it burned his mouth and tongue. He coughed but forced himself to swallow all of it.

He took a few deep breaths while he looked out at the grounds again. The bottle went into the pocket of his robes. Using his wand, he sent all of his supplies back to his quarters. His mind was quiet again as he surveyed his surroundings. He almost felt peaceful… If he could feel.

Turning on his heel, he headed back to the dungeons.

They bumped into each other about half way to their destinations.

"Professor!" Hermione sounded breathless and she couldn't help but give him a relieved smile. "I just came from Madame Pomfrey and she's cleared me for class again! I went to go… um… visit your office to… turn in my missed work but you weren't there."

His eyes were dark as he regarded the bushy haired girl. "You may turn it in tomorrow."

"Professor, are you alright? If you wanted to talk about last night, then-"

"Last night is not a concern. You are to forget that it happened. You are to erase my presence from your quarters. It never happened."

Hermione's mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water. "Why are you saying this? You just don't care anymore?"

"Caring is a relevant term, Granger. Five points from Gryffindor for wasting my time." He walked passed her, heading down the hallway, but she turned and followed him.

"What's wrong with you? If this is about what happened, it's fine. Things happen. I don't think any less of you for it." He stopped and slowly turned to her.

"If you ever speak of our conversations ever again, you'll be sorry." His nose flared and she visibly shrunk away from him.

_He's threatening me? I don't understand…_

But as Snape started to walk away again, a little light went off in Hermione's head as a horrible idea came to mind. She whipped out her wand and cried "_Accio_ potion!"

The little bottle flew out of his pocket and into her hand. She saw the remnants of a blue substance in the bottom of it. Tears filled her eyes. "You did it… How could you?"

He took the bottle from her hand and said "It's none of your business, Granger. Get back to your dormitory or you'll risk more points from Gryffindor."

"It doesn't matter!" She half yelled at him. "How could you take that potion? You're so stupid!"

"Twenty points from Gryffindor for insulting an instructor."

"Screw you! No wonder no one's ever cared! You're just a selfish bastard who won't let anyone in!" He opened his mouth to speak but Hermione cut him off again, tears streaming down her cheeks. "No! Don't talk! You disgust me! Life is about feeling! It's about emotion! You're a spineless git if you couldn't take feeling love from another person." She strode past him, shouting as she went. "Go rot in your dungeons! It's where you belong!"


	18. Chapter 18

(I'm back! After a taxing week of exams and band concerts and scheduling classes and paying tuitions, I'm able to find the time to write again! You should be able to expect almost daily chapters now so yay!

As I've stated, this is going to be a very long fanfiction. I don't have any idea how long that is, but it's pretty long. Past fifty chapters if I don't lose my writing ability again.

So anyway, I hope that you're in it for the long haul, ladies and gentlemen. LOL!

Thanks very much for the reviews that you guys give me! It really helps to get some feedback from the readers.

On that note, if anyone would like to me read and review their stories or chapters, add the title to your review/comment. I'll gladly take a look! I like to return the favors, after all!

Moving on, enjoy my new chapter and look for more soon!

I don't own anything related to Harry Potter!)

_Now there's an interesting concept…_ Severus thought to himself as he watched Granger storm away. _I'm glad that the girl has finally realized that. After all, I've been living in the dungeons for many years now._ He let the insults roll off of his shoulders as he swiftly turned and headed for his home.

Hermione wasn't as cool, however. She stormed back up to the dormitories, wiping away tears as she went. The Fat Lady took her password and she nearly barreled over a First Year as she tore through the portrait hole. Ignoring curious looks from the occupants of the common room, she took the stairs two at a time and slammed her door.

Furiously, she started to pull all of the books on potions off of her shelves, trying to remember which one contained the information about the _Apathementa_. Common sense said that the antidote to the potion should be in there, as well.

But she couldn't recall anything written about an antidote. This worried her, made her nerves a little more frayed as she sat on her bed, surrounded by piles of books. Her fingers became increasingly drier as she turned page after page, searching for a hint of the potion. She began to yearn for a computer from the Muggle world just so she could use a search engine. One could be conjured to her room but it wouldn't work without internet. The magic that was in the air wouldn't allow the technology to properly function, anyway. Books were her source of research and that was that.

Snape was sitting by his fire in his quarters with his lesson plans for the week opened on his lap. In his left hand, he held a glass of scotch. His right hand held a quill. On the end table next to him, there was a bottle of ink and curled parchment, assignments from the Fifth Years that needed to be graded.

His lip curled up into a sneer as he raised the glass to his lips. _I could just fail all of them. There's no sign of brilliancy in that year._ _No doubt that they would just attribute it to my hatred of teaching. _His thoughts pondered the idea for a few minutes before he decided that it wouldn't look proper to fail the entire class. Trouble with the Headmaster was the last thing that he wanted to deal with.

A tiny frown came to his face upon that thought. _Albus… what would he say about my decision to brew and consume the _Apathamenta_? Would it bother him? Would he care? _

The last time he took the potion, Albus found out quickly. The stolen Potion ingredients and the young man's change in behavior made Albus question him privately. Snape came clean, feeling no remorse or guilt for what he had done. As a matter of fact, he felt nothing. But he was warned by the then-professor that using the potion more than once could have some severe side effects. Also, there was no known antidote. Snape didn't care. Nor did he care now. He had ignored the warnings and that was that.

Overall, his head was quiet as he worked on the lesson plans. The silence was welcome after what had happened in the previous days. He could vaguely remember the events but he felt no emotion attached to them. It was like watching a black and white film in a class. You didn't care for the material and you'd be content to sleep through it without remorse.

Hermione was the opposite.

Hours later, she had found the entry about the potion but her heart fell when it said that there was no known antidote for it. She closed the book then with a snap and slid it across her bed to the pile of books that had proven useless to her.

Her plan to brew the antidote and somehow slip it in his drink had fallen short. _Now what am I going to do? _

She couldn't let Severus go on like this. His emotional immaturity had led him to do something horrible and he hadn't been in his right mind. If the potion hadn't stolen away his feelings, the remorse would eat him alive. She was sure of it.

And then she wasn't.

_Maybe I'm wasting my time… Maybe this is really what he wants… Could he be happier this way? Well… "Happier" is the wrong word… but is he really satisfied to live this life? Am I meddling in the life of a man that wants to live like that? Maybe my own emotions are making me blind… _

With a quiet resolve, she slid off of the bed and began to stack the books back onto the shelves. She was no longer sure of what she was to do. With no antidote, she was lost. Even with one, she would be morally against using it if that was the life that Snape knew and wanted.

_I have to forget about him. It's the only way. What he's done can't be fixed… and I can't spend the next three years waiting for the potion to lose its effectiveness… Even if I did, what would stop him from taking it again? And again? And again? _

Hermione went to supper in the Great Hall for the first time in a few days. Scanning along the staff table, she saw Professor Snape quietly eating his meal.

Snape couldn't help but look up when she entered the hall. It was an odd experience. One moment he was eating his food, the next, he was compelled to look at her.

They made eye contact for less than five seconds when she turned and took her seat next to Harry and Ron.

Snape went back to his meal, disconcerted but nonchalant.


	19. Chapter 19

(I think that this chapter will send people into a fit of angry hysterics. I told you that I was going to work in a plot twist. Here's the beginning of it!

Review please!

I don't own Harry Potter!)

The next day went as planned for Snape, until the evening after supper.

"Severus?" Snape turned to see the wizened Headmaster walking towards him through a crowd of students. His tone was jovial and upbeat but a little red flag went up in his head upon being addressed at all. "How has your day been? Fair, as always?"

It was just after supper and the question, which should have been harmless, put Snape on the defensive. Still, he was unlikely to insult Dumbledore because he felt that the man was owed a certain amount of respect, even from the ill-tempered Potions Master. "It's gone as well as can be expected. And yours?"

"Quite well, thank you, thank you. Here," Dumbledore placed his hand under Snape's elbow and gently guided him into a more private corridor. Snape didn't resist though it was his first instinct to remove the physical contact. "Severus, a disturbing rumor has reached my ears and I thought that it would do an old man well to clear it up. Come to my office for a late night chat, will you?"

"I really should return to my quarters, Headmaster. I'm behind on my grading and could utilize the time to catch back up."

Albus Dumbledore chucked, "Nonsense, Severus. You've never been behind on anything for the duration of time that we've known each other. Now really, I insist. I'll even break open your favorite brand of scotch!"

Earlier that day, Hermione spent quite some time outside of the Headmaster's office, clutching a piece of rolled up parchment for dear life. _If I can't help him… I'll go to the only person who can. _She had made up her mind only this morning, deciding to go above Snape's head on the topic of the matter.

It was a drastic move, to involve Dumbledore but Hermione was sure that her speaking to Snape would do nothing but irritate him. The Headmaster was her best bet in this situation and she thought that the best way to handle it would be with a letter.

_Okay, not the best idea… But I know that I won't be able to get a word out without stumbling on it, nor will I be able to conceal why this matters to me at all. _She didn't want to send it by owl, for fear that it could be intercepted so she decided to leave it in his office.

Too bad that she hadn't planned on how to get into his office in her haste.

She sat on the stones at the foot of his entrance with the ugly gargoyle towering over her.

She waited for almost an hour before she charmed the parchment to appear only to Dumbledore and placed it at the statue's clawed feet. Before she could second guess herself, she ran off.

Now Snape found himself in the Headmaster's office, unable to refuse the old man's request without coming off as rude or disrespectful. Not being a fool, he was well aware of why he was there. The lecture that he was given when he was a schoolboy was surely about to surface again, only to bore and annoy him in the end. _There is no antidote to the potion. Why is he going to waste his time?_

Dumbledore didn't waste time with the drinks like he stated. Instead, he sat down at his desk and regarded the Potions Master over the rims of his spectacles. "You've taken the _Apathementa_ again, haven't you? Why, Severus? I thought that you were past the angst of your teenage years."

"_Why_ is none of your concern." His tone was cooler than he had intended it to be. "Yes, I took it. For my own personal reasons, might I add. I don't see why I'm in need of a stern talking-to."

Dumbledore didn't respond right away. Instead, he looked down at his desk and started to write. "You're going to take a leave of absence from my school until an antidote is created or the effects wear off."

If Snape could feel, he would be in shock. Instead, a cold sensation started in his chest and slowly began to creep along his skin. "A leave of absence?"

"I warned you once, Severus. _Apathementa_, as you know, is used in extreme cases at St. Mungo's. It's not meant to be taken by people who are walking around amongst normal human beings. After the first dose… patients exhibit behavior that they wouldn't be proud of if they could feel shame or remorse. With the second dose, those symptoms only get worse."

"Albus, I am a level-headed individual, not some crack-pot psych ward patient."

"Indeed… which is why you should understand my concern. I'm not firing you, Severus. I'll be providing housing for you in Godric's Hollow until you are… returned to normal. When that happens, you'll be welcomed back."

"And what will you be telling my colleagues?" His nostrils flared.

"You're on a mission for the Order of the Pheonix and will return after it's been completed."

"You've gone mad." It had appeared that Snape had decided to forgo the polite speak.

"No, Severus, I haven't. You are now a danger to my students and that is not acceptable. You have 24 hours to vacate the premises."

"No. I will not be leaving here. You will have to physically remove my possessions and myself."

The Headmaster sighed heavily, knowing that it the conversation was going to turn sour quickly.

Snape slowly slid his hand into the pocket of his robe, curling his cool fingers around his wand. The hairs on the back of his neck were standing up. He could feel the energy crackling gently in the room. Dumbledore seemed to emanate with power, even as he sat at his desk, performing mundane tasks.

The old man had never looked at Snape in this fashion before. He suddenly understood what it was about Dumbledore, the fatherly old man, that made lesser wizards quake in his presence. Power was a part of him, clearly. But foolishness was a part of Snape after the _Apathementa_ took effect.

Snape stood and took aim against the Headmaster, fully intending to stay where he was. But Dumbledore was much faster than anticipated, dodging whatever disarming hex Snape had sent his way with a spin. The Potions Master was unable to pull a second move because the Headmaster waved his wand with a flourish and Snape was suddenly falling… and falling… and falling…

He hit the floor with a loud thud and got to his feet at once, disoriented by the darkness that surrounded him. His wand reacted without instruction, illuminating a different room entirely.

He was in a parlor, overly furnished with a Victorian era style. He cringed, knowing that Dumbledore had gotten his way. His blood surged under his skin, singing in his veins. With his hands clutching his wand, he reached for the light switch on the wall next to him.

His eyes were filled with pink cushions and white lace… Dumbledore's punishment for attacking him.


	20. Chapter 20

(Got another one. I'm mixing things up a lot now. It's turning into an Alternate Universe fanfiction as more ideas come into my head. I had intended it to follow the books ((more or less)) but that flew out the window after the first three chapters. I'm having fun playing with the different characters.

In her last chapter, DZMom (my bestest friend on here) brought an unexpected character into her story (Salubrious Snape Oil) and it gave me the idea that I could throw someone new in too. Thanks for the idea, Dee!

That being said, she's writing an excellent SS/HG story that you should totally check out! Give her some hits and share those reviews!

Speaking of reviews, I've been getting some great ones from the readers! Keep them coming, please! I love the input!

Anyway, moving onto the story...

I don't own Harry Potter in any way, shape, or form!)

Upon being dropped into a pink-nightmare parlor, Snape lowered his wand arm and looked about the room he was in. If he had the ability to, he would be furious at the Headmaster's audacity to send him to Godric's Hollow against his will.

His eyes scanned the Victorian furnishings. Overall, it was lavish and well-decorated; two things that the former Potions Master couldn't stand. There was a white fireplace in between bookshelves and, though he didn't want to move in case this proved to be reality, his feet took him to them at once.

He scanned the titles and scoffed. Every book he saw seemed to be about one of three things: potion brewing, creating antidotes, or living with mental disorders. The third category was the oddball in the bunch and he wondered if the old man was just trying to fuck with his head. Just as the thought occurred to him, an audible pop from behind made him jump.

Turning, he saw a bubble floating about three feet away. In the translucent orb sat an envelope that was labeled "Severus" in elaborate handwriting. His hand darted forward and took it from the bubble which disappeared with another pop.

Knowing it was from the Headmaster, he opened the envelope to pull out the parchment letter inside. Eyes darting from left to right, he silently read the words.

_Severus:_

_I'm deeply sorry for the way that the meeting went. I was really hoping that you'd be more understanding but your attack on me confirmed that the Apathementa is clearly affecting your judgment. You may think me mad now, but the logical part of your brain that is left will eventually come to realize that I speak the truth._

_Using _Apathementa_ more than once affects your emotions in the long run. By suppressing them for so long, when it wears off, it can make them more intense. Until then, humans often make many decisions by using feelings. Now that you aren't in tune with yours, it makes you more likely to make poor choices regarding the safety of yourself and your students. I should have explained this to you better and you should have done your research._

_You have two choices now: You make work on creating an antidote and take it or you may wait the two or three years that it takes to wear off. Only once you are freed from the grip of the potion will you be allowed back on the grounds of Hogwarts. Furthermore, once I assess that you are in the proper mental state, you may take your position back as Potions Master but only then._

_It saddens me to force this upon you, Severus, but for the safety of my students and staff, it's necessary._

_The home that you're sitting in right now is one of my summer houses. Please keep it neat and orderly. The décor should be suited to your tastes, if I'm not mistaken._

_Get well soon, Severus._

_~Albus_

Snape crumbled up the piece of paper and then lashed out at a nearby lamp, knocking it off of the table. It crashed to the floor, shattering into tiny little pieces. Staring at its landing spot, he realized that he wasn't angry, even though that was clearly an angry reaction. He had temporarily lost control of himself.

Though as he stared at the broken lamp, he breathed heavily as it put itself back together and jumped up on the table, right where it had been.

He used his wand to slash at one of the pink couches, only to find that the fabric sealed itself up and the stuffing went back into place. "So I can't destroy the furniture. Nice to know." He ignored the fact that he was talking to himself.

The rest of the house was furnished in the same fashion much to his distaste and he went as far as to try to change the wallpaper in the master bedroom to no avail.

He stopped in the kitchen, which was as modern as the house got, sadly and leaned against the counter, pinching the bridge of his nose to try to prevent the headache that he could feel forming.

The young witches and wizards of Hogwarts took notice of the Potions Master's absence right away. Rumors flew back and forth about his whereabouts amongst the student body. Only Dumbledore knew the truth and Hermione Granger was aware of this.

After three days of not seeing Snape, Hermione paid a visit to his office in an attempt to locate him. She even utilized the Marauder's Map but Snape wasn't on there.

She wasn't too worried until a week later when Dumbledore stood up in the Great Hall to make an announcement after breakfast.

He said that Severus Snape took a personal vacation from Hogwarts for his health and that he had to locate a temporary Potions Master to take his place.

Hermione's jaw dropped when she saw a woman come to stand beside Dumbledore. She recognized her at once as Nymphadora Tonks, an Auror for the Order of the Pheonix. She smiled brightly at the students that were gathered before her, winking at Harry, Ron, and Hermione, who still couldn't control her look of disbelief.

Those of Slytherin House left the Great Hall that morning in an outrage, until the rumor flew that she was not replacing Snape as the Head of House, just as the Potions instructor. Still, they were enraged by the idea.

Hermione was worried and confused, though. Snape was gone and she and Dumbledore seemed to be the only people to know that it was due to the _Apathementa. _She thought about going to Dumbledore again but it was very possible that she wouldn't be able to find him. With that in mind, she went back to the dungeons, hoping to run into Tonks.


	21. Chapter 21

(In this chapter, I'm employing another part of my plot twist. If you're careful, you'll pick up on it. I'm anxious to hear how you feel about it though. I wasn't too sure of the idea but I like where it's going. Let me know what you think!

It's a shorter chapter. I'm trying to think of a way to incorporate Snape back into the chapters again. He's just kind of off by himself at the moment. See, when I had him drink the potion, I didn't think about how hard it would be to write about a person who doesn't FEEL. Now I'm not sure what to do with him.

I can't just have him magically create an antidote and come back to Hog- wait... Ahaha! I got it! Seriously! Right now! Oh, this will be good! But I can't put it into play until a few more chapters are finished up!

I don't own Harry Potter!)

Hermione was in luck.

The new Potions Mistress was in Snape's office on her hands and knees, scrubbing the floor the Muggle way. Upon hearing footsteps behind her, she looked and up turned, smiling as she recognized the Seventh Year. "Hermione!" Getting up, she embraced her and then stepped back. "So nice to see you again! I wish that it were under better circumstances though."

Hermione frowned. "Are the circumstances bad?"

Tonks went to draw up chairs for the two of them. "Certainly so. I was quite shocked when I came here to speak to Albus on Order business and he asked me to take the position." She furrowed her brow at the look on Hermione's face. "Surely he told you? You _were_ the one who alerted him, weren't you? He said you were."

"I told him in a letter about the _Apathementa_ but I didn't sign it. How did he know it was me?"

She shrugged while picking cleanser out of her thumb nail. "I dunno. He's the amazing Albus Dumbledore! He has his ways, I suppose." She chuckled. "Though, he didn't know how you found out in the first place." Her eyebrows went up in a questioning manner.

"I noticed a change in his behavior, that's all. It was around the time that I discovered the potion in a book I borrowed from the library. I matched up the symptoms but mostly went off of instinct."

She laughed this time, looking fondly at Hermione. "You're a clever witch, Hermione. You could have taken this job! Instead, he's chosen me. Sure, I can whip up a good brew or two but I've got nothing on Severus Snape."

"He will be back soon, right?"

"That much, I don't know. Apathementa is a nasty little thing and from what I was able to gather, this is his second dose. You're only supposed to take that stuff once in a lifetime." She twirled her finger in a corkscrew manner against her head. "Messes your head up if taken more than once. Albus reckoned that he would be a danger to the student body while under its influence so he sent him away."

"Until he wears off, I assume?"

She shrugged again. "Or he creates an antidote to it. We'll have to wait and see. I think Albus is planning on visiting him periodically, just to make sure that he's still partially sane. I mean, can you imagine? Living without emotions?"

Hermione shook her head. "No, I can't. Do you know where he's staying?"

"No idea. He's keeping that much under lock and key. I don't think he trusts Snape in his current condition so he wants everyone to leave him be. I assume that he's being kept at one of the unused safe houses that Albus has set up."

_Being kept at?_ "Like a prisoner? That's not what I wanted to happen." _Well… what DID I want to happen?_

"Sorry, honey. You know that Albus always has something planned. I wouldn't worry too much about your Potions Master. The man is resilient."

"Is he?"

"Oh, absolutely. But I can't tell you about most of that. Order stuff, you know?"

She rolled her eyes. "But you can tell me everything that you just did?"

Tonks kicked her boots up onto the desk and crossed her legs. "Yep. I like you. Therefore, you're in my circle of knowledge. Truthfully, Hermione? I think that your little golden trio should already be initiated into the Order. We could use someone with your skills."

The compliment made Hermione flush a little. Quite often, she heard her friends tell her "good job" but it was something else completely to hear it from an accomplished Auror and a member of the Order. Normally, all she heard from them was "You're too young"!

She took note that Tonks was blushing as well. _Odd… I don't think I've ever seen her turn red before._

"Thanks for the information, Tonks. I'll keep it to myself. But… why were you scrubbing the floor?"

She laughed, holding her stomach, eyes lighting up. "Have you seen how Snape kept this room? Disgusting! And as for doing it "the old fashioned way"? Sometimes it's nice to remember how hard the Muggles have to work. It's all about pride, Hermione, and a sense of accomplishment."

Nodding, Hermione giggled. Tonks was right after all.

They talked for a little more after that and Hermione was surprised at how comfortable she felt. Her stress seemed to be melting away every time Tonks laughed or smiled. The environment was so light. By no means had she forgotten about Snape, but Tonks was charismatic. It was a welcome break from the brooding man who had a terrible habit of taking off at the drop of a hat.

It got to the point that Hermione agreed to help Tonks clean out the grimy office the "old fashioned way" and she was pleased to find out that it was indeed more satisfying. Her smile was true for the first time in a while when she was with Tonks.


	22. Chapter 22

(Hey ladies and gentlemen. I'm sorry that I've been so absent. I've been in a terrible mood. I'm feeling better after a good weekend though so I decided to post a chapter out there.

Enjoy what I have and I'll try to be more active with my posts.

I don't own Harry Potter.)

"Nothing… Nothing… Nothing…" Snape's voice was low as he muttered each word at the turn of a page. After spending a few weeks in his humble abode, he decided to give in and at least attempt to read the books on potions that Albus had provided. His logic suspected that he was being watched by the Headmaster in some kind of non-intrusive magical way. Rather than annoy the old man, he decided to play by his rules… for now.

After going through half of the books on the shelf, he realized that he wasn't going to find anything in them that could help and with a wave of his wand, they flew back to their spots.

"I'll have to create an antidote." He had taken to talking to himself in his solitary confinement in the pinkest of hells. By no means was he thrilled with the idea of making his own potion, but he was starting to realize that he hadn't any other choice.

He visited the pantry near the basement door and he began to gather the ingredients that were needed to create the _Apathementa_ in the first place. While he was bent over peering at the bottom shelf, a loud popping sound made him jump and stand up straight. He turned to come face to face with Albus.

"Hello, Severus! Nice to see you looking for potion ingredients again." His smile was warm as he gestured towards the sitting room. "Come and speak to me. We can have tea."

Snape reluctantly led the way, giving Albus a sincere sneer. "Come to see the caged animal?" He took a seat on a wooden chair, regarding his visitor with cold eyes.

"Nonsense, Severus. Now how are you feeling?" He smiled and corrected himself, shaking his head at his own joke. "Or rather, how are you doing? More appropriate, I think, for the situation."

The ex Potions Master was less than amused. "I'm doing quite well. No signs of insanity on my part. The _Apathementa_ has yet to destroy my life as you predicted."

Albus conjured a tea set to the coffee table in front of him and began stirring sugar into a cup of hot water. "Any trouble sleeping? Talking to yourself? Repeating actions over and over again? I've been keeping an eye on you, of course. You tend to sleep walk and talk at the same time."

"Invasion of privacy. Without a doubt." If it was possible, Snape stiffened even more.

He tested the tea carefully then, deciding it was suitable, took a large gulp. "Not entirely. You're not in your right mind, you see. It's for your own safety and the safety of others."

"The safety of others?"

"Yes, and your own safety. You weren't aware of the sleep walking, were you?" He didn't wait for Snape's response. "No, of course you weren't. You try to break out of the house while you walk about, talking nonsense about Miss Granger."

Snape's mouth turned into a thin line at the mention of the girl. He hadn't thought of her in a few weeks. Albus noticed this and put down his tea. Leaning over the cup, he gestured Snape to move closer. He obliged.

After a few whispered words from the Headmaster of Hogwarts, the contents of the tea began shimmer and then they turned to glass. On the surface of the glass, Snape could see himself in that blasted house, stumbling about. He watched as his image knocked over a lamp and potted plant on its way to the door. At the door, his sleeping self began to bang at the wood. He caught muffled murmurs of "Must…reach… Granger…" and "She knows…" as though it was coming through little speakers on the bottom of the glass.

When Albus leaned back, Snape followed suit and opened his mouth, prepared to shoot out some kind of excuse.

"No, I don't know why you would be after Miss Granger but I certainly cannot let you out of here to find out. Now, I'm sure that you know by now that she was the one that turned you in to me. It's quite possible that with your emotional repression, your subconscious is over reacting to that knowledge."

"You can't be serious. You think that I'd harm a schoolgirl for something so petty?"

"Absolutely. Like I said, you're not in your right mind, Severus."

Snape knew damn well why his subconscious was trying to reach Hermione Granger but he wasn't about to share that with the Headmaster of Hogwarts. He could kiss his job goodbye forever if the truth got out. He was trying to get reinstated, not canned permanently.

Albus Dumbledore stayed for about ten more minutes before he left Snape to his own thoughts. He nodded towards him and then poofed back into his office, a trick that only the Headmaster could do.

"How is he?" Tonks turned to face him at once, shoving her hands into the pockets of her robes very quickly. Albus noted that his little silver trinkets were spinning in odd fashions, as though someone had been playing with them. He raised an eyebrow at her after gazing at them for a second. She smiled and winked.

Moving wearily towards his desk, he said, "He's as well as can be expected. I informed him of my observations. No reaction, of course. We expect that much, though."

"Did you speak to him about his mutterings for Hermione?"

He nodded as he sunk into his chair. "Partially. I brought it up but he didn't say much on the topic. Like I said before, I'm doubtful that he would aim to hurt the girl."

"Romantic feelings against a student would be harmful to her all the same. I didn't think that the risk of physical harm was really there. It's more the emotional harm." She paused and then sighed. "Are you going to tell Hermione? She's smart. She can handle herself."

"I don't plan on it, no. She's too young."

Tonks crossed her arms. "Albus, that doesn't sound like you. You know that those three have been through more than most of the order. She deserves to know if something is going on that directly involves her."

"Nymphadora, you know that I can't tell her. She mustn't know that she will be the one to create the antidote. It will change the order of things and alter the future. Severus isn't going to make it on his own and this is fact. If Hermione does not come up with the solution than he will suffer with this ailment until it wears off or he dies."


	23. Chapter 23

(Sorry that I'm taking so long in between chapters.

Ignore how muddled up this chapter is. The last one was terrible as well. I apologize for that.

The next few chapters should flow better as I get some inspiration back! We shall see!

I don't own Harry Potter!)

Completely unaware of the information that Tonks and the Headmaster of Hogwarts possessed, Hermione was spending more and more of her time in the library, researching the _Apathementa _religiously. By this point, she memorized the ingredients and the quantities of such. Also, she could name different varying items that would change the strength of the potion, depending on what the drinker was using it for. Still, despite her growing knowledge on the mixture itself, she had yet to come across something that could reverse the effects. Everything that she was reading told her that the potion had to run its course.

Though frustrated, she was unwilling to give up. However, as she researched, a new problem made itself known. Even if she could come up with an antidote to the _Apathementa_, how was she going to test it for safety and effectiveness? She wasn't willing to risk Snape's wellbeing and health by making him the very first guinea pig. But on that note, she wasn't willing to harm another living creature with her experimental creations.

One night, while she was scribbling on a piece of parchment in her room, a daunting idea came to her mind. It was so frightening a thought that she laid her quill down on her desk and rubbed her eyes with a thumb and forefinger.

_If I can't test my potion on Snape… Or anyone else… Wouldn't it make sense to test it on myself?_

But in order to test it on herself, she would have to brew and drink the _Apathementa_.

It wasn't a pleasant thought but, as she racked her brain, no other solution appeared.

_This is crazy_, she thought to herself… How _far am I willing to go to save this git's feelings?_

As her mind turned back to Snape, she could feel her chest growing tight as it so often did when she thought of him. Tonks hadn't been very forthcoming about what kind of state he was in now and she hadn't even considered asking Dumbledore. Surely, he wouldn't offer her anything in the way of information but he would question her motives for caring. She didn't want that.

But the loneliness that she felt in her chest grew worse all the time. Tonks had turned out to be quite the Potion's Mistress but it didn't take Hermione long to miss Snape's scowl or even his insults. The other students were quite happy with the perky Tonks though and had seemingly forgotten all about the foul-tempered dungeon dweller.

Hermione had sent out owls to him, hoping to hear something but the birds always came back a few days later with the letter still attached.

_It's been nearly three weeks. I've got to find him. _

Of course, the only hope she had of doing that was the person that had taken his place.

Tonks was given instructor quarters just outside of the Hufflepuff corridor and that's where Hermione headed.

When she found the door, she knocked and a smiling Tonks appeared. "Hermione! What brings you here?"

"I need to talk to you." She was a little breathless and her cheeks shone with a rosy glow as Tonks beamed down at her. _How fast was I walking?_ She shook the thought from her mind.

"Of course! Come on in!" She stepped aside to let the Seventh Year pass.

Her quarters were tastefully decorated and Hermione waited for Tonks to direct her to sit on the plush love seat in the center of the living area. "What's on your mind?" She got right to the point as she sat down as well.

Hermione placed her hands in her lap and looked down at them as she spoke, feeling oddly shy and nervous. She hadn't thought about what she was going to say to the Potions Professor ahead of time. "Well… I need your help. It's about Professor Snape."

"Oh?" Her eyebrows disappeared into her hairline. "What about him?"

"I've been working on finding an antidote to the potion that he took… the _Apathementa_? And… I'd like to know where he's being kept and what kind of condition he's in… so I can design the antidote accordingly."

Tonks pursed her lips. "I know what you've been working on… So does Albus. And he'd have my head if he knew that I told you that."

She shook her head, confused at the blatant openness that Tonks had just exhibited.

"Don't look so shocked, Hermione. I don't know what it is about that man but he insists on keeping you kids in the dark. Hell if I know why. Anyway, we know that you've been working on the antidote. Albus saw it in one of his wonky little instruments that he keeps on his desk. Don't ask me which one or how because I've got no flippin' idea. Too complicated for me."

She said nothing, just tilted her head to the side in some more confusion.

"Anyway! Yeah, we know that you've been working on it. You're going to find it too, from what he says. But, unfortunately, I can't tell you where Severus is." Hermione made a small, squeaking sound of protest but Tonks cut her off. "Only because I don't know of the exact location, myself! He's keeping that information under lock and key. But I can tell you that he's safe, at the very least."

Un-sticking her throat, Hermione found her voice. "How am I supposed to do this if I can't see him?"

"Albus hasn't said that much. But if I were you? I'd break into his office to find out on my own." She winked and laughed. "Don't look so shocked! How else are you going to find out? I mean, you could ask him yourself but it isn't going to get you anywhere and you know it!"

"No, but breaking into the Headmaster's office is likely to get me expelled!"

Tonks laughed again. "So is carrying on a romantic relationship with a professor but that didn't stop you, now did it?"


	24. Chapter 24

_So this is one of my longer chapters and I can't guarantee that everyone is going to agree with the ending. I had to take the chance though. I know that it's sudden and not expected but I was tired of the idea floating about in my mind. I had to get it down. I might even work on another chapter tonight and have it posted sometime tomorrow. I don't know yet. I go where the inspiration leads me, you know? _

_So enjoy this chapter and look for a new one to be up soon!_

_I don't own Harry Potter._

* * *

Looking very much like a fish, Hermione opened and closed her mouth a few times. She was at a complete loss for words at Tonks' sudden accusation. Not prepared for anything of that caliber, she couldn't even try to cover it up now with a well-placed lie after her apparently obvious reaction.

Tonks smiled and then lightly punched her on the arm. "Hey! Don't look so scared! I already knew! I mean, you aren't good at hiding much, are you?"

Hermione couldn't formulate an answer. No words were coming to her. Her face, however, burned a brilliant red color that seemed to grow hotter as the seconds passed.

"Really though? Severus Snape isn't exactly a best friend to the students here. Maybe if Minerva fell ill or myself," She paused to wink, "then students would be scrambling to find something to help us. But Snape? Even the members of his own house took Dumbledore's words to heart!"

"But… that doesn't mean that I-" At last, she found something to say but Tonks cut her off.

"Oh yes it does. You've been spending more time researching than sleeping! Don't think its gone unnoticed that you're spending more time in the library than usual. It was just a hunch really. I took a risk in shooting that at you but your reaction said it all."

Silently cursing herself, Hermione let out a sharp breath and attempted to relax her shoulders. She failed but carried on the conversation, nonetheless. "Does the Headmaster agree with you?"

Tonks eyed her carefully, being very selective about her words. "He… has his suspicions. Though, I don't think you need to worry. He's yet to indicate that there will be repercussions for either of you. I think he's more concerned with the health of his staff member, if nothing else. Of course… for the sake of his sanity and everyone with knowledge of this, I think that it goes without saying that you shouldn't make such feelings public."

"There's nothing to "make public", Tonks." Hermione was being stubborn now. Tonks rolled her eyes and laughed.

"You know, I've been forthcoming with you. The least you could do is return the favor. Between us girls, anyway."

Unsure of herself, the Seventh Year nodded stiffly. "I have… an attraction to him. But nothing has happened between us."

Laughing again, she said "I guess I can settle for that much. I don't expect you to spill everything at the drop of a hat, you know!"

Silence came between the two for a few moments while they both tried to form a sentence in their minds.

"So you really think I should break into Dumbledore's office?" Hermione was the first to speak, attempting to get off of the topic of her strange attraction to Snape. "That's more than I was willing to risk."

She shrugged and conjured up a tea set to sit on the table in front of them. "I don't know, Hermione. It's been determined that you're going to come up with this antidote but I don't know how Albus expects you to get anything productive done if you can't get to Snape. Honestly?" She poured some hot water into two cups. "I think he knows you're going to try it. It might be some kind of test. It's also probably why he hasn't told me where Snape is being kept. I think he suspects that I talk too much." She couldn't hide the smile that played across her lips. "Can you imagine? Me? Talking too much?"

Hermione's lips copied hers. "Of course not. Ludicrous idea. The nerve of him!" She accepted the cup of tea from Tonks and they drank in silence for a few moments.

Tonks leaned back against the love seat and tucked her legs underneath her. Turning to face Hermione, she stopped hiding the beaming grin. "So. Severus Snape. Of all the professors to crush on, why did you choose the Dungeon Dweller?"

Hermione's face blushed a deep crimson, coloring her skin all the way to the roots of her curly hair. "Well… I see him differently than other people do. I don't reckon he's as bad as his reputation is."

She was grinning over the top of her cup. "How do you figure? He seems to be in a rather foul mood all of the time."

"I… don't really know. It's very hard to explain. I feel like… I can see deeper than that."

"Is he the first professor you've ever had a crush on? Did Hagrid ever suit your fancy? Or maybe Professor Binns was appealing at one point?" Her grin was infectious.

Hermione sputtered in her tea and burst out laughing. "Of course not! Especially not those professors! What about you? Who did you fancy when you were here?"

"Me?" She put her empty cup down. "There was a woman who taught Astronomy here for a while. Terrible class but beautiful girl. Her name was Raven and she was gorgeous."

"Wait." Her cup went down as well. "You… had a thing for… a woman?"

Tonks laughed and ran her fingers through her short, spikey pink hair. "Yes, honey. I'm gay. You didn't know? Why did you think that I rejected Remus when he began to fall for me?"

"I-I don't know. No one did. We assumed it was because he was… you know… a wolf." Hermione seemed genuinely confused and surprised. Her speech shook a little bit as she was unsure of what to say at this shocking piece of news.

"Well, that was part of it. But if the wolf had different parts then I might have unleashed myself a little." She winked. "If you catch my drift."

Hermione's face burned red again.

"I'm sorry. Is this too awkward for you?"

She shook her head. "No, no, no. It's…" She smiled and continued. "Interesting."

"Oh? Well, I was a little younger than you are when I started experimenting. Keep in mind that I'm not that much older than you anyway. I had boyfriends but they just didn't do it for me. I was always attracted to the women. Even through the robes, I could tell who had the best figures. It's all in the curve of the face, you know?"

"The face?"

"Yep." She scooted towards Hermione. "Let me show you. You've got a figure like Raven did."

"I do?" Hermione's voice wavered a little bit as Tonks grabbed her hand and put it up to the brown-haired girl's cheek.

Tonks murmured her appreciation as he face came closer to Hermione's "This isn't making you uncomfortable, is it?" Her fingers began to trace along her jawbone.

She shook her head and swallowed.

"Okay… well…" Her voice had lowered considerably in volume from where it was a few minutes ago. Hermione felt goose pimples creeping up her legs. "You can tell a woman's figure from her jawbone. Feel how yours is smooth and angular? But it's got a tiny bit of squish to it?"

"Yes."

"You've got a good figure for a woman. You're not too thin or too thick. But you're just right." She took her hand again and put it to her own face. "Feel mine."

Hermione reached out to gently run her fingers across Tonks' burning jaw line. She was surprised to see her eyes slowly fall shut like she was enjoying the student's caresses. Biting her lip, she moved her finger tips to slide down her teacher's neck. She felt the goose pimples there.

Tonks opened her eyes now to gaze at Hermione like she was seeing her for the first time. Her eyes had changed to a dark green and the contrast against her white skin surprised her. _Beautiful… _The words crossed her mind for a split second.

Then the Seventh Year leaned over to capture Tonks' lips with her own.


	25. Chapter 25

_This is an extremely short chapter. I just wanted to get it up before half of my readers disappeared. . I wasn't intending so many people to think that Hermione was going to fall for Tonks. I guess that I should have been more clear about what was going on. Hopefully, you guys can see what's happening now. Well... you can have a more clear idea of it, anyway. _

_Yes, Dumbledore did do what it says. No, they aren't Death Eaters in disguise. They're still the same, good people that they always have been. They just have a plan up their sleeves that isn't quite clear yet. _

_I don't own Harry Potter at all. _

* * *

Locked in a lustful embrace with her stand-in Potions professor, Hermione suddenly felt liberated and slightly intoxicated at the taste of Tonks' lips against her own. Her body pressed closer to her and she breathed in the scent of her.

Tonks' seemed to sink into the kiss for a minute, her lips working against Hermione's, before coming to her senses. She gently grasped at Hermione's shoulder and pushed her away. With an arched eyebrow, she regarded the Seventh Year closely. "I'm not going to complain. But… are you feeling alright?"

She nodded slowly with a dazed look in her eyes. "Yes… Why?" Her words were drunkenly slurred, as though she had a good bit of whiskey in her system.

"Hermione? You sure? You're not looking too well…" Tonks' voice trailed off as she slipped into unconsciousness. As she slumped over the couch cushion, the Potions Mistress shook her shoulder. "Hello? You alive?"

"She is breathing, correct?" Albus Dumbledore stepped out from Tonks' bedchamber, a grim look on his face. He gazed down at the fallen Hermione from behind his moon-shaped glasses and then bent down to examine her face. Lifting one of the girl's eyelids, he nodded and then stood up straight again.

"She is. I still don't see why we have to do it like this, Albus. We could have just told her. There was no reason to drug her." Tonks was pursing her lips with her arms crossed, sternly staring at the sleeping Hermione.

"No… it was meant to happen this way. She could have looked for weeks for the antidote and never come close to it. This is how it's got to be."

"But drugging the girl? I imagine that she isn't going to be too happy when she wakes up."

"Perhaps not. Have you disabled the surveillance equipment at Godric's Hollow?"

"I did just before she knocked on my door."

"Very good. Here. Help me with her."

The two of them were able to charm Hermione to Dumbledore's office with little difficulty. Once she was laid across his desk, her wand in her hand, he asked Tonks to step back. When she did, he muttered the spell and her body poofed into thin air.

When she was gone, Tonks glared at Dumbledore. "I hope you know what you're doing."

"As do I."

Severus Snape was tossing and turning in his bed when he felt a sudden weight appear next to him. In the darkness, he squinted to see a dark shape on the other side of the bed. He rolled and stood up, backing away from the bed. Using his wand that he had snatched up from the night table, he muttered "Lumos".

What he saw made him wish that he hadn't woken up.

A sleeping Hermione Granger was passed out on his bed, fully clothed, and completely unaware of where she was. Skeptical and paranoid, Snape stepped forward and tapped her on the forehead with his wand, his movements sharp and crisp.

She didn't budge and he backed up again. "Bloody hell, Albus. What are you trying to do?" He was no fool. He knew that it had to be the work of the Headmaster. No one else had been able to get into the house since Snape was dumped there.

Now he had a sleeping Seventh Year lying on his bed. Confused, Snape checked her breathing and pulse. Both were normal but he shivered when he felt how warm her skin was against his.

Shaking his head, he left her on the bed and exited the room. He headed for the kitchen and conjured some whiskey. He would need it now. Half hoping that Dumbledore would appear so that he could jinx him, Snape downed one glass with ease.

When the alcohol ran down his throat, he suddenly took note of the still air. It wasn't tinged with magic like it normally was. Walking around the downstairs, he couldn't hear the steady hum anymore and assumed that his magically surveillance had been shut down. "Brilliant."

Heading straight to the back door, he pulled it open and took a step outside. Or… he thought he did. Within a split second, he was back on the linoleum floor. Apparently the wards on the house were still in effect. Snape wasn't going anywhere.


	26. Chapter 26

_(Hello and welcome to Chapter 26! I've reunited Snape and Hermione and I'll be back into the romance aspect of the story. If you're just joining us or you need a recap, Albus and Tonks drugged Hermione and sent her to the holding home where an emotionless Snape is currently residing. Neither Snape or Hermione know why she's been sent there and has become trapped as well. As always, please read and review. I love hearing feedback from my readers! Please and thank you!_

_I don't own Harry Potter. I just write for fun!)_

* * *

Hermione's eyes fluttered open and she moaned softly as she tried to adjust to the soft light. As objects began to come into focus, a slight feeling of panic started to rise in her chest. Nothing was familiar.

From what she could tell without moving, she was in a very old-fashioned Victorian style bedroom. The comforter underneath her was filled with down feathers and lacy black curtains hung on the canopy bed above her. Due to the flickering quality of the light, she assumed that there was a dying fire in the grate on the other wall. She could see the mantel but nothing past that.

Slowly, she sat up and waited for the slight dizziness to stop coursing through her head. Silently, she tried to recall what happened. The last thing she could remember was drinking tea with Tonks. Now she found herself in a strange bedroom that she had never laid eyes on before.

Rubbing the sleep from her eyes, she stood up and straightened out her robes. Her wand was in her pocket and she fished it out, holding it in front of her almost in a defensive stance. Unsure of where she was or what to expect, she crept toward the large oak door and turned the knob.

As she stepped into the hallway, the creaky floor groaned under her weight. She drew her foot back quickly and cast a silencing charm on her shoes.

Downstairs, pondering the dilemma that was the back door, Snape heard the ceiling above him crack and creak. He rolled his eyes and headed towards the stairs.

Hermione looked down the flight of stairs when she heard shuffling. A dark shape started ascending and she stepped back into the shadows of another room.

"Granger? Are you awake?" The gravelly voice of the former Potion's master made her heart flutter in her chest. She fought to control her breathing. She hadn't heard him speak for almost a month. This might have been a trick from a dark wizard, considering that she had no idea where she was.

The dark shape moved past the door in which she was hiding and she stepped out, placing the point of her wand into the back of his neck. He froze in the darkness and put his hands out to the side.

"Who are you?" Hermione kept her voice strong, seeking answers from the only other living thing she had encountered so far. "How did I get here?"

"I assume that the Headmaster had something to do with it, if I had to take a guess." His voice echoed in the hall with a lazy, bored tone to it.

"Why would Professor Dumbledore send me here? Without my permission?"

"Miss Granger, you're asking the wrong person. Now kindly remove your wand from my neck."

"How do I really know that you're Severus Snape and not a Death Eater in disguise?"

"Kill me and find out if you don't want to take that chance."

Hermione bit back a retort and pursed her lips. Her wand hand twitched for just a second before she put it down at her side, still keeping a tight grip on it just in case.

"There. That wasn't so bad, now was it?" Snape turned to face her, looking down into her eyes with an icy gaze.

Hermione was at a loss for words.

Even in the darkness, she could read nothing in his face or in his eyes. They were fathomless and empty. It made a shiver go through her body but she didn't let him see it. Past the shiver, a feeling of sadness started to grip her. This wasn't the man who left Hogwarts. The potion was ruining who he was. And for some reason, that was hurting Hermione.

"Fine then. Don't answer me. I need to find a way to get you back to the school. This is no place for you." He swept past her and descended the stairs. "Follow me. Maybe you'll be the privileged one and you'll be able to leave this hell."

"Hell?" Her voice was small as she followed him, eyes darting around, taking in the Victorian setup of the house.

"Yes. Hell."

"Oh." He stopped when they reached the back door in the kitchen. It was still open. Without waiting for her to speak or an explanation from him, he grabbed her by the arm and forced her out the door.

Hermione stood still for a second before she felt her stomach drop and she appeared back in the kitchen with a little pop. "What the hell is your problem?" She was angrily adjusting her robes and hair.

Snape swore loudly, explaining that they both were trapped in the dwelling without any way out or any communication with the outside world.

"What for?" She was still flustered, annoyed at his roughness.

"Ask your Headmaster. He's locked me away in here, insisting that I'm mentally unstable since I drank the _Apathementa_."

"So why am I here?"

"Does it look like I know? Stop your banter. I need to think." He left her standing on the linoleum as he headed for his bookshelf in the sitting room.

Hermione stomped her foot gently, confused and frustrated. "Now wait just a minute!" She pulled the kitchen door shut and followed him. "Could this have anything to do with the antidote?"

He was already sitting on a chaise lounge with a book on his lap, brows furrowed over his forefinger and thumb. "To the _Apathementa_? Doubtful. If I haven't found the antidote, what would make Dumbledore think that a student could help?"

Feeling slightly insulted, she started to look through the books on the shelves. "I don't know. But he sent me here for a reason. So what have you learned about creating an antidote?" Looking around the room, she saw empty bottles and bits of ingredients lying on the large dining room table.

"Nothing. I'm still looking."

"But you're actively trying to find an antidote to it? I thought that going emotionless was what you wanted."

He glared at her over the book on his lap. "Emotionless, yes. Jobless, no."

"So you're giving into what he wants you to do? Just to get your job back?"

He closed the book and placed it on the coffee table. "And for other reasons."


	27. Chapter 27

_I'm busy with summer courses again. Sorry for the delay. Not much happens in this chapter but the next few are going to be full of action! Be on the look out for them! _

_I don't own Harry Potter!_

* * *

Annoyed, Hermione asked "And those reasons are?"

He got up and headed back towards the kitchen. Without looking in her direction, he muttered, "Personal."

"You know, I'm living with you now. Who knows for how long? You could at least stand to be pleasant!" She called to the kitchen. When she received no response, she sat down on the lounge with a huff and started to thumb through the book that he had been scanning.

Snape came back about fifteen minutes later. He didn't look at her as he went to the wet bar by the bay window. As he poured some whiskey into a glass, he spoke with gritted teeth. "Your clothing has been moved into a wardrobe upstairs."

"My clothing?" The book came down.

"Yes, wretched girl. I doubt that Dumbledore had intended to make you stay here naked."

"You've got such an attitude problem. Even without emotions, you're a right git." Frustrated, she put down the book and headed back up the stairs.

It didn't take her long to find the room across from Snape's with the wardrobe full of her clothes. She was strangely surprised to find no robes, instead her Muggle clothing was hanging neatly inside of the wooden cabinet. With a sigh, she stripped off her robes and left them on her bed. She donned some jeans and a fitted tee, deciding that she might as well be comfortable if Snape was going to be so hostile.

Though, she couldn't blame him. She was feeling rather bitter herself, unsure of why she was sent there and what she was expected to do. Snape hadn't made any headway with the antidote yet Dumbledore seemed bent on the idea that Hermione was going to fix the Potions Master. She wondered what she was going to do that Snape himself or Dumbledore couldn't do.

After dressing, Hermione felt it necessary to attempt to speak to Snape. Her hopes weren't high but the sooner she got this antidote done, the sooner she could go back to Hogwarts.

Snape was laying out on the couch, feet propped up on one end of it. As she walked by him to head into the kitchen, she was became keenly aware his eyes taking her in. He hadn't even seen her in jeans therefore, he had never properly noticed her body shape. But Hermione didn't stop to chat, she continued on her path to the kitchen with his eyes on her rear end.

_No emotions but his hormones still work. _She leaned against the counter top by the sink and fanned her face. The smoldering look that he had been giving her had gone straight to her nether-regions, causing her blood to pump a little harder. Biting her lip, she turned on the cold tap water and splashed some onto her face. It was enough to cool her down as she cursed herself for being so attracted to him.

_Well… Now I need a distraction. _Her attention turned to the refrigerator and she popped it open. It was fully stocked, to her surprise. Suddenly hungry, she decided to make something to eat. Reaching for the lettuce, she wrapped her fingers around the crisp plastic and pulled it out. She jumped when another head of lettuce appeared exactly where the old one had been with a loud pop.

"Not quite a Muggle home, is it?"

She spun to see Snape sitting at the kitchen table, watching her. "I'm making a salad. Would you like some?"

"No, thank you." She couldn't read him and that unnerved her a little bit as she went about gathering carrots, celery, and other green leafy foods.

"So you can be polite. You just choose not to be." It took effort to keep the biting tone out of her voice.

"I apologize."

Pulling the head of lettuce apart and sticking it in a bowl that had appeared on the counter, she raised her eyebrows. "You're sorry?"

"I am. I'm sorry that you've been dragged into this."

Unsure of how to respond, she took a few seconds and then glanced at him. "It's okay." Her eyes locked with his and she noted how his expression was softer now than it had been when she arrived. With an awkward clearing of her throat, she went back to the salad in progress.

After a few silent minutes, Snape asked her if she needed any help.

Confused, she nodded and said that he could cut up the carrots for her if he wanted. A few minutes later, Severus Snape was cutting carrots into small bits for a salad.

Hermione considered this thought in her head and fought to suppress a giggle. She tried to imagine him in a short apron, standing next to the stove with a wooden spoon in hand but the image was ridiculous. She couldn't keep quiet.

"Do you cook at all?" His question was quiet, gentle. It invaded Hermione's ears and made her hands tremble a little.

"I do during the holidays. My mum taught me. I was raised a Muggle so it was normal for me to learn. Besides, food that's prepared by hand tastes better than food that's been made my magic."

He nodded and moved to cut celery without being asked. He was silent for a time and then he spoke "I used to cook. My mother could use magic but you're right. By hand was always best. After I lived at Hogwarts for so long, I lost the talent because the house elves do a good enough job."

_They do a good job for oppressed creatures. _The thought came before she could stop it. However, now was not the time to bring up talk of house elf rights. Instead, she settled for bringing up the antidote as she started to rummage in the fridge for proper dressing. "I don't mean to change the feel of the conversation but what have you found out about a possible antidote.

"Nothing, Miss Granger. I've tried a few mixtures, a few spells. The only thing that happens is that my stomach goes out of commission for several hours. No signs of… feelings… though."

She nodded grimly. "I've been researching back at school. I haven't made any headway, either."

"Brilliant," he finished in a sarcastic manner.


	28. Chapter 28

_Well, here is chapter 28. I know that it's been a considerable wait. Sorry about that. _

_I've got a spot of bad news for my readers though. Please don't hurt me!_

_Chapter 30 will be my last chapter before I mark it as "complete". It's been a long haul with this one and I'm looking forward to starting a new one and focusing on my others. _

_I've already got another idea in mind for a sequel to this one. Would you guys be interested in one or should I just leave a good thing where it is? _

_Sorry for dropping that on you like that. Lol. But at least you have some warning. _

_Please read and review. I always LOVE to read feedback from you guys and gals!_

_As always, I don't own Harry Potter!_

* * *

Once the salad was prepared, Hermione sat at the kitchen table and ate quietly. Snape watched her without saying anything and she tried to shrug off the nervous feeling that he was giving her. The staring was unnatural and the silence was even worse. She wondered what his thoughts were. _What do people without emotions think about, anyway?_

Several attempts at making small talk fell short before Snape got up to place the remaining salad into a container and put the bowl in the sink. It cleaned itself and disappeared. "I don't know how long you'll be here for… so we should probably start work on an antidote. I don't see how you're supposed to help though."

Hermione tried not to flinch at his partial insult. "Neither do I. I didn't ask to be sent here, you know." She speared the last of the lettuce with her fork and chewed quietly. "Though, maybe Dumbledore just wanted us to put our heads together to see what we come up with. Like a team."

"Perhaps. Are you finished?" He had moved to collect her empty bowl. She gave it to him, keeping her mouth shut for fear of him losing this politeness.

A few minutes later, the two of them were seated at the dining room table, the ingredients for the _Apathementa_ laid out before them in a neat row.

"So… we have the ingredients. Now what do we do?"

"Trial and error. It's how all antidotes are created. Almost. I haven't gotten to the point of adding outside ingredients yet because there isn't one specific thing that kills emotion, rather, it's a combination of things."

"That could take years though, trial and error."

"Which is why we begin now, Granger." He moved to pick up a boline and a ginger root. Cutting it into little blocks, he instructed Hermione to pick up the dead leeches and extract their juices. She made a face at him in disgust but he ignored it. She did as she was told without argument after that.

An hour later, they had a potion simmering in a cauldron in the fireplace. They were looking doubtful as Snape bent over to stir it. The consistency was all wrong, looking more like green soup than the antidote to something and Hermione wasn't feeling hopeful at all.

"Now we just let it simmer for a few hours?"

"Overnight, actually. We could start another batch while this one sits."

Distaste crossed her features and he arched an eyebrow at her. "Or not?"

"I don't think we're going about this right, Professor. There's got to be another angle that we haven't covered yet." She went back to the table to thumb through another book that she had yanked off of the shelf.

"Severus."

She looked up at him but his face was turned towards the fire. "What?"

"I'm not your professor at the moment. Severus, please."

"Oh." She fell silent and watched him thoughtfully as he stroked the fire.

He paused and then followed through. "So may I call you by your first name then? Until we return to Hogwarts?" Turning to look at her, he waited for her answer.

"Yes, of course! You mustn't ask."

As he turned back, she swore that his lips curled up into a small smile when he whispered her name. Hermione's throat went dry instantly as she was hit with a sudden realization. The gears in her head began to turn frantically, trying to grasp the bits of information and hold them tightly.

"Severus?" She was slightly breathless.

He abandoned the potion altogether to give her his full attention, a look of intrigue on his face at her tone. "Yes?"

"Does the antidote have to be a physical potion? Or is it possible for something else to cure the effects of the _Apathementa_?"

"Such as?"

She didn't speak for about a minute, carefully crafting her answer. "Could it be… a simple object… a person… a single ingredient… amulets? Instead of an entire potion or elixir." She wove her realization into the answer with meaningless distractions, hoping that he wouldn't notice.

"Everything points to the antidote to a potion being a potion itself. Why do you ask?"

"Maybe we've been going about this the wrong way. Excuse me for a moment." She didn't wait for a reply before scurrying past him and up the stairs.

As Hermione tore through her room looking for her makeup bag, her thoughts ran wild and uncontrolled. Things were suddenly making sense to her.

_Why Dumbledore and Tonks sent me here… Why we haven't been able to find a potion antidote… It's me. It's got to be me. _

The magic behind it was unconventional. Could it even be called magic? She didn't know. But she knew that no one had been able to prove it before and here, she had the chance to solidify a long-standing theory.

Love.

_Why didn't I think of it before? It's the strongest of all emotions and he's never truly felt it. It's in science! Two babies are born at the same time. One is cuddled, cared for, held, and loved. The other is given the basic needs of life and nothing more. The former grows to thrive and laugh. The latter never develops properly, doesn't put on weight, and eventually perishes. _

Finding the makeup bag, she applied a touch of eyeliner and lip gloss. Then she sought out proper clothing.

_He's never been loved. The Apathementa took a hold of him far too easily because his emotions weren't fully there to begin with. There wasn't love to block the effects of the potion. _

Dressed in the cutest sundress she could find, she looked at herself in the mirror and… then she began to falter.

_What if I'm wrong? What if I'm jumping to conclusions and it all comes crashing down?_ She set her lips in a straight, stubborn line. _No. I've got to try._

She headed for the door and pulled it open to find Severus standing there, poised to knock on the door. "Hermione, I-" He stopped mid sentence as he looked down at her face, and then past that to her body, wrapped tightly in a feminine article of clothing.

Before either of them could say another word, Hermione stood on her toes and drew his face down to hers.


	29. Chapter 29

_Here's the second-to-last chapter, ladies and gents, and I warn you: It's a graphic one. Now I'm no good at writing about sex but here's my attempt at it. I hope that it gets my point across. _

_I haven't decided on a sequel yet. I have the idea for it but I'm not sure if I should set it into motion. The sequel would be about their relationship once they get back to Hogwarts. If I did decide to go ahead with it, I might tangle with the wires of fate and make their relations public, rather than the hush-hush version of their romance that I mostly read about. I would envision a lot of bad reactions from other students, staff, and even parents but I kind of like the idea of that kind of drama. I don't know yet. What do you think? Yay? Or nay? _

_Anyway, enough of my rambling! As always, read and review! _

_I don't own Harry Potter!_

* * *

Severus' mind went blank upon seeing Hermione in her room, looking more feminine than ever before. When she came onto him, he didn't move and let it happen.

At the touching of their lips, he felt numb and almost paralyzed, but as her mouth worked against his, he felt warmer and warmer, the sensation making him relax. With strong hands, he pulled her body to his so there was only clothing between them.

He drew a sharp intake of breathe and gripped the back of her head with a palm, gentle but firm, not allowing her the opportunity to pull away.

Hermione heard him growl and let out a little moan of her own. He tasted wonderful to her and her tongue met his to deepen the kiss. Pressed against him, she could feel the heat of his chest, his pounding heart, and the large protrusion down past his belt. She pressed her moistening cunt closer to his cock, delighting in the sensation it caused her.

No words needed to be exchanged as Severus read her body language right. His appendage was pressing painfully against the crotch of his pants and he strangely wondered why he didn't buy his trousers a size bigger. The thought made him smile through his lip-lock as his hands snaked around to the back of Hermione's sundress. A deft forefinger and thumb clasped the zipper and pulled it down, allowing his fingers to graze the skin of her lower back.

Taking her cue from the former Potions Master, Hermione ran her cool hands underneath his shirt, surprised at the heat and muscle definition that she felt there. He pulled the cotton over his head so she could take him in, breaking the kiss for a moment.

He was pale but his shoulders, biceps and pectorals were well-defined for a man that lived in the dungeon of a castle. There wasn't a six pack set of abs across his abdomen but the skin was smooth and cool to the touch. Her body pressed against his again, capturing his lips once more.

He went to pull the thin straps down from her shoulders, to free the breasts and nipples that were rubbing against his bare skin. With a wiggle, the dress fell to the floor. Snape growled again at seeing her bra-less. Her hard nipples drove him crazy as they grazed him and her hot skin was a wonderful contrast to his cool.

Hermione broke the kiss this time as she began to fumble with his belt. She struggled briefly and smiled up at him. "You had the easy job." Her tone was heavy with need but playful, nonetheless. He chuckled, a deep, rumbling sound in his chest and vibrated parts of the girl to the core. She bit her lip back and worked faster.

Upon unzipping his pants, they fell to the ground and she came face to face with his dick. It was hard already and pulsing with blood. The tip of it shone slightly, precum dripping from the end. Hermione dropped to her knees and licked her lips in anticipation.

She laid a light kiss on Severus' second head and started to work her lips down the shaft, one grueling inch at a time. The deeper his cock went, the harder he found it to stand upright. He fought the urge to cum right then and there and grasped the door frame with his left hand, squeezing tight.

With his appendage fully lubricated, she began to bob her head back and forth over him, her tongue pressing to the bottom of his shaft, lips sucking him hard. Severus moaned out loud, whispering her name in pleasure. His right hand came to rest in her hair as he looked down at her taking the whole length of him into her mouth. Her brown eyes stared up at him in the sexiest manner he had ever seen.

Using one hand to balance her on his leg, the other hand reached down into her panties to stimulate herself as she sucked. She moaned herself and the vibrations nearly sent Severus over the edge. He pulled himself out of her mouth and drew her up to standing height. Here, he picked her up and carried her to bed, tasting his own fluids on her lips.

She went down back first and he pulled her to the end. On his knees, he pulled off her panties with his teeth, breathing in the smell of her sex on the cotton. He could now see her in all her glory. Her pink twat was swollen in the candlelight, looking wet and inviting, begging to be tasted and then fucked.

As his head descended between her legs, she arched her back and gripped at the bed comforter. His tongue delivered a few sensuous licks to her core before it began to flick back and forth on her engorged button.

Already extremely aroused, she felt a climax building with intensity. She tried to pull away but he wrapped his arms around her thighs and held her tight.

As her moans grew louder and higher-pitched, he felt himself tighten with anticipation. With a growl, he broke away from the oral aspect and pushed her higher onto the bed. Then he positioned himself between her legs, cock long and hard, bobbing outside her entrance. He took one last look at her before he slipped his sword into her wet sheath.

The pain was only momentary as his length entered her and it was quickly replaced by building pleasure. He brought himself down to her and kissed while he thrust, working his tongue in her mouth like his cock was working another part of her. It wasn't long before he felt himself building up to orgasm and he quickened his pace.

She came with him, arching her back and sinking her nails into his. He felt her walls tighten around his swollen member and with a final stroke, released his load into her depths.

As they both came down from the orgasm, he collapsed on top of her, their sweat mingling on their bare chests. He dipped his head to nuzzle her neck, his cock still throbbing inside of her. He savored the smell of her and the feel of her soft skin.

"Hermione… I love you." His words were soft and muffled against her neck. She closed her eyes as she wrapped her arms around him tightly. Then, without removing himself from her, they rolled and she laid down on top of him.

"I love you too, Severus."

With a wet, squishing sound, his member popped out of her. Her eyes grew wide for a second at the embarrassing sound. He just smiled at her and then they both laughed.


	30. Chapter 30

_Ladies and Gentlemen, here it is! The final chapter to "An Unlikely Pairing" is hot off my keyboard and ready to be read! It's been a long haul and I've been through a lot as a writer and as a person in writing it. All of your feedback and reviews have helped me to better edit my work and gave me motivation to continue working (even when I didn't want to). Thanks so much for your support. _

_I've decided to write the sequel. I haven't set myself on a title yet. I was thinking something along the lines of "A Rejected Union". I don't know yet. But there will be a sequel. I should have chapter one up by the end of the weekend. _

_In any case, this one is done! Please give me your final reviews and thanks so much to all of my readers! _

_I don't own Harry Potter!_

* * *

It didn't take long for Severus' breathing to even out and eventually deepen, signaling to Hermione that he was asleep. She waited for a few minutes longer before extracting herself from his arms and sliding off the bed.

A bathrobe hung on one of the posts of the bed and she put it on, tiptoeing out of the room in complete silence.

Sitting at the kitchen table with a cup of tea, she let her thoughts consume her, one by one.

_I just had sex… with a teacher… a much, older teacher… Oh gods, what have I gotten myself into? How did that start? Why didn't I stop and think? What was it? Passion? Love? I told him that I loved him. He said he loved me? Hermione, what were you thinking? This is absurd! _

_Oh, but he laughed. Does that mean that the _Apathementa_ is gone? Was I really the antidote after all? Or was it just love? Can he really love me? Can I love him back?_

_How will he act when he wakes up? What will he say? What if he turns me away and shuns me like it never happened?_

She bit her lip as the bombardment of thoughts continued. _Or worse… what happens if… we become a couple? Will he remain professional back at Hogwarts? Will he be allowed to teach again after an affair with a student or will the school fire him for good? Will Dumbledore find out? How will he react? Will the students find out? Oh gods, I hope not… _

_How do I actually feel about him? I remember when I was blind… how intense the feelings were then… but was it really love? Could I really love the Potions Master? Could he be the kind of man who would allow me to love him?_

"…Hermione?"

She jumped with a little gasp because she hadn't heard him enter the kitchen but when she looked up, there he was, standing on the cool tile in nothing but boxer shirts. "You left the bedroom." His eyes were hidden in shadows so that she couldn't see them.

She swallowed and fought her thought away. "I'm sorry… I needed a drink of tea, I think. I couldn't sleep."

"Oh." His answer was quiet. Neither of them moved for a moment before he walked up to her, bent down, and then pressed his cool lips to her forehead. This single action was enough to make a tear fall from her eye and hit the table. Luckily, Severus was seating himself and he hadn't noticed.

"How… I mean… do you… feel?" Hermione's words were hesitant, not sure on how to ask what was on her mind.

With a wave of his wand, a cup of tea appeared in front of him. "I feel… Is that enough?" There was a tiny smile on the corner of his mouth as he stirred sugar into his drink.

"I mean… what do you feel?"

"I don't know… I feel… relaxed. And warm. I feel drawn to you in ways that I haven't felt before." He paused at her silence. "I'm sorry that my explanation is not adequate for you. I'm not accustomed to speaking about emotions or feelings. I suspect that I will develop that skill in time." He stood up and offered his hand to her. "Please. Come back upstairs?"

She drank the rest of her tea and took his hand. Looking back, she saw and heard the cup disappear with a pop. Snape's hold on her fingers was gentle as he sipped his tea on the way back to the bedroom. He didn't enter her room when he got there though. Instead, he stopped outside of it and asked her if she would sleep with him.

"I-I just did. You mean, again? So soon?"

He chuckled as her eyes widened, the sound echoed deep in his chest. "I'm sorry, I wasn't clear. I meant, would you sleep with me? Actually rest in my bedchamber."

"Oh." She hadn't been asked that before and it caught her off guard. "Why, yes, I suppose."

"Did you want to shower first? I'm not very well versed in the hygiene habits of females but I'd like to shower myself, before retiring for the evening. We have much to talk about tonight, I think."

Hermione didn't deny the shower and they both went their separate ways to do so.

Upon drying off with her wand, she went to her silk nightie. She brushed her teeth. While doing so, her mind stayed tame in the way of her thoughts. She was hoping to keep her mind quiet for a little while, not wanting to get a headache before she went to lay with him.

She wondered if he actually wanted her to sleep with him, to share intimacy. _What does he know of such intimate things? _

Her feet padded across the soft carpet of the hallway in silence and she stopped at his door, raised a hand, and knocked gently.

He appeared, wearing black silk pants but no shirt, smiling at her through dim light. He moved aside to let her in.

The lit fireplace was the only source of light in the room. It made shadows dance across the walls. He closed the door behind her and then suddenly picked her up! She yelped and grabbed at him out of her surprise but she was placed on top of the sheets before she could get a grip. "Severus-"

He gently kissed her lips to stop her speech, moving over top of her to the other side of the bed. Breaking the kiss, he settled down and pulled the blankets up from their feet.

Hermione didn't need any prompting to cuddle into his chest. His skin was warm to the touch now and she wrapped a leg around one of his. The sound of his heart beating in his chest made her relax and she sunk into him.

She had started to feel the grip of sleep on her when he spoke and the deep voice slightly startled her. "We're no longer trapped here. Albus has lifted the wards on the house."

"Is that his way of telling us that we may return to Hogwarts?"

"I think so. But it also means that he somehow knows of our love making… or of the slow return to my emotions."

"How? Was he watching us?" The idea woke Hermione up a little and she snuggled closer to him. Severus unconsciously accepted her movements and smoothed down her hair with his left hand.

"Maybe. But he knows, in any case, and he's setting us free. We can Apparate to the grounds tomorrow, if you wish."

The sound of his heart and the crackling of the fire filled the silence for the next few minutes. "Severus… when we go back…"

"I will continue to love you."

"But what if-…"

He interrupted her. "Albus knows. I will not lose my job and you will not be expelled. I will continue to love you. If it makes you more comfortable, we will be cautious but I suspect that we will be found out at some time. Are you willing to carry on such a controversial relationship within the walls of the castle?"

She thought about how it was too soon to consider such a thing. She knew that it wouldn't be received well if it got out. Harry and Ron alone would not approve of the relationship at all. She could only imagine how the rest of the wizarding world might act.

But even as her thoughts were imagining the worse, her chest was warm against his. She felt happy, and right while she laid next to him in the king-sized bed. Never did it occur to her that she might find herself in this position. And never did it occur to her that she might like it.

_Gods help me, I like it enough to want to keep it. I want it. _"Yes," she answered. "I am."

They sealed it with a kiss.


End file.
